A longitudinal study of a classroom level aggression and social competency: Effects on students' aggressive behavior

This study examined the effects of the classroom social context on the development of student aggression across a school year among elementary school students. Moderating effects of students' initial level of aggression, gender and developmental level were examined. The classroom context was defined as the aggregate level of aggression and social competency. Aggression and social competency were measured using The Behavior Assessment System for Children Teacher Rating Scales (BASC-TRS-C; Reynolds & Kamphaus, 1992). Multiple regression analyses using general linear modeling (GLM) were employed to assess for change in student aggression. Findings indicate that the classroom social context did influence change in student aggression across a school year; however, the findings were not always in the hypothesized direction. Major results included: (1) Initial level of aggression moderated the effects of classroom social competency on student aggression. Higher levels of classroom social competency led to increases in student aggression at lower levels of initial aggression and decreases in student aggression at higher levels of initial aggression; (2) For upper elementary aged students, higher levels of classroom aggression led to more significant decreases in student aggression than lower elementary students, and (3) higher levels of classroom social competency led to more significant increases in aggression for younger students than older elementary students. The implications of the findings are discussed in regard to future research and practice.