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Explicit Beliefs about Aggression, Implicit Knowledge Structures, and Teen Dating Violence

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Abstract

This study examined whether explicit beliefs justifying aggression and implicit knowledge structures theorized to facilitate aggression both contributed to between-subjects differences in teen dating violence (TDV). In addition, this research examined the contribution of explicit and implicit cognitions in the prediction of within-subjects changes in TDV over a 6-month period. Participants were 147 14- to 17-year-olds (48 % female) recruited from courts and agencies providing services to adolescents in trouble because of antisocial behavior. Teens completed a measure of explicit beliefs justifying aggression, a speeded word-completion task designed to measure aggressive content in implicit knowledge structures, and a measure of TDV. Measures were completed at 3 assessments, spaced 3 months apart. Results indicated that explicit beliefs justifying aggression and implicit knowledge structures theorized to facilitate aggression both contributed independently to between-subjects differences in TDV. However, only explicit beliefs about aggression were associated with within-subjects changes in TDV over the 6-month study period. These findings highlight the importance of considering both explicit and implicit cognitions in attempting to understand the perpetration of TDV.

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  1. Department of Psychology, Southern Methodist University, P.O. Box 750442, Dallas, TX, 75275-0442, USA

    Ernest N. Jouriles, David Rosenfield, Renee McDonald, Anne L. Kleinsasser & M. Catherine Dodson

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  1. Ernest N. Jouriles
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  2. David Rosenfield
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Correspondence to Ernest N. Jouriles.

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This research was supported by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention R01 CE001432.

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Jouriles, E.N., Rosenfield, D., McDonald, R. et al. Explicit Beliefs about Aggression, Implicit Knowledge Structures, and Teen Dating Violence. J Abnorm Child Psychol 41, 789–799 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-013-9717-0

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