Bidirectional association between child maltreatment and adolescent aggression from early-to-mid adolescence

Abstract

While prior research has documented robust associations between child maltreatment and adolescent aggression, most studies have conceptualized this relationship as unidirectional, focusing primarily on the consequences of maltreatment for later aggressive behavior. In contrast, emerging theoretical and empirical work suggests that parent and adolescent behaviors might reciprocally influence one another over time. However, longitudinal examinations of this bidirectional association, particularly during early-to-mid adolescence, remain limited, especially in non-Western contexts. Using a nationally representative longitudinal sample of South Korean adolescents from the Korea Child and Youth Panel Study (n = 2267), the present study examined the reciprocal relationship between child maltreatment and adolescent aggression across five annual waves from ages 10 to 14. Random-intercept cross-lagged panel models were employed to distinguish between stable between-person differences and within-person changes over time. Results revealed significant autoregressive effects for both child maltreatment and adolescent aggression, indicating substantial continuity in each construct throughout early-to-mid adolescence. In addition, significant cross-lagged effects emerged in both directions: higher levels of maltreatment predicted subsequent increases in adolescent aggression, while elevated aggression predicted later increases in maltreatment by parents. Model comparison tests further demonstrated that these reciprocal associations remained stable across time, suggesting a constrained developmental process during this stage. Collectively, these findings provide strong evidence for a stable, reciprocal relationship between child maltreatment and adolescent aggression during early-to-mid adolescence. The results extend bidirectional and developmental perspectives by illustrating that parent and adolescent behaviors mutually influence one another within a critical developmental stage. Implications for prevention programs that simultaneously address parenting practices and adolescents' emotional and behavioral adjustment are discussed.