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Adolescent violent behavior and ego development
JOURNAL OF ADOLESCENT HEALTH 2002;31:446 – 448
ADOLESCENT HEALTH BRIEF
Adolescent Violent Behavior and Ego Development PAMELA PERSHING DiNAPOLI, Ph.D., R.N.
Abstract: The guiding hypothesis of this study was that there is an association between violence and ego development. Exploratory factor analysis was used to generate summed scales used as proxy measures for the major construct components, ego development and violence. The results of this study support the hypothesis. © Society for Adolescent Medicine, 2002 KEY WORDS:
Ego development Youth violence
Recent school-based tragedies have refocused the nation’s attention on youth violence. The National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC) has encouraged research focused on the need to understand how developmental and contextual factors influence behavior, particularly “at-risk” behaviors [1].
Review of Literature Loevinger suggests that lower-level ego development is manifested by impulsive and self-preserving behavior such as violence [2]. In addition, research suggests that lower-level ego development is often characterized by impulsivity, poorly internalized moral controls, egocentric thought, and exploitive personal relationships [3–5]. It is reasonable to assume then, that lower-level ego development may translate to poor behavior choice that includes acts of
From the School of Health and Human Services, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire. Address correspondence to: Dr. Pamela Pershing DiNapoli, School of Health and Human Services, University of New Hampshire, 247 Hewitt Hall, 4 Library Way, Durham, NH 03824. E-mail: ppdn@cisunix. unh.edu Manuscript accepted July 15, 2002. 1054-139X/02/$–see front matter PII S1054-139X(02)00450-0
violence. During times of ego development, when the adolescent is particularly susceptible to sociocultural influences, it is likely that it is the interaction between the individual and contextual factors (social and environmental) that is ultimately antecedent to violence. The interaction between the individual and context is central to the cascade of events in defining how lower level ego development is translated to behavior choice. This exploratory study uses multiple regression modeling in an attempt to further our understanding of factors in the interpersonal environment that function to mediate ego development with the potential to decrease violence as a behavior choice among adolescents.
Methods WAVE 1 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) was the data source for this exploratory study. The data set afforded the opportunity to analyze a large number of variables collected on a national-level sample (N ⫽ 20438). The purpose and sampling methods for the Add Health Study have been described elsewhere [6]. The estimation process began by predicting a direct effects model that confirmed that low-level ego development was a significant predictor of violence (p ⬍ .001). Second, multivariate equation modeling was used to fit an indirect effects model to determine how well independent contextual variables predicted ego development. The term “contextual variables” is used to describe influences such as those found within the adolescent’s neighborhood structure (community), family backgrounds, schools, peer groups, and the media [7]. Variables were progressively introduced into the regression equation. Variables were removed from the equation if they did not rise to the level of significance set at p ⬍ .05.
© Society for Adolescent Medicine, 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Inc., 360 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010
December 2002
EGO DEVELOPMENT AND ADOLESCENT VIOLENT BEHAVIOR
Table 1. Demographic Characteristics of Study Sample (N ⫽ 20,438) White non-Hispanic Black non-Hispanic Native American Asian Hispanic Mean age (years) Median grade (range)
Male
Female
5080 (51%) 2213 (22%) 205 (2%) 771 (13%) 1774 (17%) 16.22 10 (7–12)
5251 (50%) 2443 (23%) 174 (2%) 694 (7%) 1731 (17%) 16.07 10 (7–12)
Measures Summed scales were generated using factor analysis as proxy measures of ego development and violence. Principal-component factor analysis is used to generate proxies for variables that are best measured as continuous latent variables. Inter-item correlation and Cronbach alphas demonstrated reliability of these new measures. The measure, ego development, was generated from a series of six items that loaded on a single factor. Scoring the variable as a continuous measure reflected the principles that low-level ego development is behavior that is extrinsically motivated, resulting not from active decision-making, but from rewards engendered for performing behavior. Higher-level ego development is self-determined behavior characterized by active independent decision-making, managing motives, and responding to internal cues represented [8]. The measure had a mean factor score of 1.01 (SD ⫽ .83; range ⫽ ⫺1.83–2.23). The violence variable was similarly constructed from 10 items entered into the factor analysis. Two items that did not load on the single factor at .50 or greater (i.e., “Number of times injured in a physical fight” and “Is a gun available in your home?”) were dropped from the measure, leaving a final construct comprised of eight items. Based on an eigenvalue of 2.78, a one-factor solution was considered the optimal solution. The mean factor score was 0 (SD ⫽ 4.87; range ⫽ ⫺.51–3.92).
Results The sample for this study included 20,438 adolescents with a mean age of 16.14 years (SD ⫽1.76; range ⫽ 13–19). The sample demographics are presented in Table 1. Ego development explained 10% of the variance in violence in a direct effects model. The indirect effects model demonstrated that race, gender, and ethnicity all significantly influenced ego development. When controlling for age, girls have higher-level ego devel-
447
opment ( ⫽ .89) than do boys. African-American ( ⫽ ⫺.10) and Hispanic ( ⫽ ⫺.04) adolescents had significantly lower-level ego development than did white adolescents. The individual’s cognitive appraisal or self-perception explained 29% of the variance in ego development. Variables that significantly contributed to higher-level ego development were largely related to health and emotional factors. These included self-perception of physical fitness ( ⫽ .26), health status ( ⫽ .12), and coordination ( ⫽ .15). Adolescents with higher-level ego development reported lower feelings of depression ( ⫽ .30). Lower levels of ego development were associated with negative efficacy expectations ( ⫽ ⫺.05) and low self-esteem ( ⫽ ⫺.02). The exploration of social influences revealed that social bonding effected lower-level ego development ( ⫽ ⫺.08), as did a history of school suspensions ( ⫽ ⫺.04) and having to repeat a grade in school ( ⫽ ⫺.03). Finally, school connectedness was associated with higher-level ego development ( ⫽ .06).
Discussion Adolescents with insufficient ego integrity are ill prepared for the choices inherent in the natural course of the developmental process that requires adolescents to adapt to a series of transitions (e.g., school changes and puberty). This current study supports the rationale behind initiatives that bolster ego development during transitions from middle to high school. When significant adults are involved with adolescents in a supportive way, the development of greater self-determinism and better behavior self-regulation is expected. The findings in this study are consistent with those by Chung and Elias [9], who found a strong co-occurrence between low self-efficacy, particularly in one’s academic performance, and problem behavior. A secondary data analysis is always subject to the limitation that the measures in the study do not correspond with those in the literature. The measures of ego development and violence were correlated only weakly in this study, despite strong theoretical evidence to the contrary. The explanation for this association may result from the large sample size alone. In addition, the measures had demonstrated reliability and internal consistency but they had no previous empirical testing. Further research on item development and testing is required to confirm the findings in this study before recommendations for interventions can be made. Second, a well-designed
448
DiNAPOLI
study of ego development should involve a longitudinal cohort study that would fully explore changing cognitive ability as it affects ego development. Adolescence is characterized by a spectrum of cognitive abilities ranging from concrete thinking to the level of formal operations that could not be controlled for in this current study. Finally, familial contexts and structure have been reported in the literature to significantly affect ego development; these measures were not incorporated in this current study and are worthy of future study. This exploratory study provides theoretical and empirical evidence that the process of ego development is influenced by physical and emotional well-being, underscoring the potentially important role the health care practitioner may play in reducing violence. A well-designed future study of the antecedents to violent behavior must consider these important issues.
JOURNAL OF ADOLESCENT HEALTH Vol. 31, No. 6
2. 3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
References 1. Millstein SG, Ozer EJ, Ozer EM, et al. Research Priorities in Adolescent Health: An Analysis and Synthesis of Research
9.
Recommendations, Executive Summary. San Francisco: University of California National Adolescent Health Information Center, 2000. Loevinger J. Ego Development. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1976. Gfellner BM. Ego development and moral development in relation to age and grade level during adolescence. J Youth Adolesc 1986;15:147–63. Novy DM, Gaa JP. The association between patterns of family functioning and ego development of the juvenile. Adolescence 1992;27:25–36. Pecukonis EV. A cognitive/affective empathy training program as a function of ego development in aggressive adolescent females. Adolescence 1990;25:59 –75. Bearman PS, Jones J, Udry JR. The national longitudinal study of adolescent health: Research design. Available at: http:// www.cpc.unc.edu/projects/addhealth/design.html. Accessed August 12, 1998. Elliott D. Youth violence: An overview. Paper presented at the Aspen Institute’s Children’s Policy Forum “Children and Violence Conference”, Queenstown, Maryland, February 18 –21, 1994. Cox CL. The interaction model of client health behavior: Application to the study of community-based elders. ANS Adv Nurs Sci 1985;9:40 –57. Chung H, Elias M. Patterns of adolescent involvement in problem behaviors: Relationship to self-efficacy, social competence and life events. Am J Community Psychol 1996;24:771–84.
ADOLESCENT HEALTH BRIEF
Adolescent Violent Behavior and Ego Development PAMELA PERSHING DiNAPOLI, Ph.D., R.N.
Abstract: The guiding hypothesis of this study was that there is an association between violence and ego development. Exploratory factor analysis was used to generate summed scales used as proxy measures for the major construct components, ego development and violence. The results of this study support the hypothesis. © Society for Adolescent Medicine, 2002 KEY WORDS:
Ego development Youth violence
Recent school-based tragedies have refocused the nation’s attention on youth violence. The National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC) has encouraged research focused on the need to understand how developmental and contextual factors influence behavior, particularly “at-risk” behaviors [1].
Review of Literature Loevinger suggests that lower-level ego development is manifested by impulsive and self-preserving behavior such as violence [2]. In addition, research suggests that lower-level ego development is often characterized by impulsivity, poorly internalized moral controls, egocentric thought, and exploitive personal relationships [3–5]. It is reasonable to assume then, that lower-level ego development may translate to poor behavior choice that includes acts of
From the School of Health and Human Services, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire. Address correspondence to: Dr. Pamela Pershing DiNapoli, School of Health and Human Services, University of New Hampshire, 247 Hewitt Hall, 4 Library Way, Durham, NH 03824. E-mail: ppdn@cisunix. unh.edu Manuscript accepted July 15, 2002. 1054-139X/02/$–see front matter PII S1054-139X(02)00450-0
violence. During times of ego development, when the adolescent is particularly susceptible to sociocultural influences, it is likely that it is the interaction between the individual and contextual factors (social and environmental) that is ultimately antecedent to violence. The interaction between the individual and context is central to the cascade of events in defining how lower level ego development is translated to behavior choice. This exploratory study uses multiple regression modeling in an attempt to further our understanding of factors in the interpersonal environment that function to mediate ego development with the potential to decrease violence as a behavior choice among adolescents.
Methods WAVE 1 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) was the data source for this exploratory study. The data set afforded the opportunity to analyze a large number of variables collected on a national-level sample (N ⫽ 20438). The purpose and sampling methods for the Add Health Study have been described elsewhere [6]. The estimation process began by predicting a direct effects model that confirmed that low-level ego development was a significant predictor of violence (p ⬍ .001). Second, multivariate equation modeling was used to fit an indirect effects model to determine how well independent contextual variables predicted ego development. The term “contextual variables” is used to describe influences such as those found within the adolescent’s neighborhood structure (community), family backgrounds, schools, peer groups, and the media [7]. Variables were progressively introduced into the regression equation. Variables were removed from the equation if they did not rise to the level of significance set at p ⬍ .05.
© Society for Adolescent Medicine, 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Inc., 360 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010
December 2002
EGO DEVELOPMENT AND ADOLESCENT VIOLENT BEHAVIOR
Table 1. Demographic Characteristics of Study Sample (N ⫽ 20,438) White non-Hispanic Black non-Hispanic Native American Asian Hispanic Mean age (years) Median grade (range)
Male
Female
5080 (51%) 2213 (22%) 205 (2%) 771 (13%) 1774 (17%) 16.22 10 (7–12)
5251 (50%) 2443 (23%) 174 (2%) 694 (7%) 1731 (17%) 16.07 10 (7–12)
Measures Summed scales were generated using factor analysis as proxy measures of ego development and violence. Principal-component factor analysis is used to generate proxies for variables that are best measured as continuous latent variables. Inter-item correlation and Cronbach alphas demonstrated reliability of these new measures. The measure, ego development, was generated from a series of six items that loaded on a single factor. Scoring the variable as a continuous measure reflected the principles that low-level ego development is behavior that is extrinsically motivated, resulting not from active decision-making, but from rewards engendered for performing behavior. Higher-level ego development is self-determined behavior characterized by active independent decision-making, managing motives, and responding to internal cues represented [8]. The measure had a mean factor score of 1.01 (SD ⫽ .83; range ⫽ ⫺1.83–2.23). The violence variable was similarly constructed from 10 items entered into the factor analysis. Two items that did not load on the single factor at .50 or greater (i.e., “Number of times injured in a physical fight” and “Is a gun available in your home?”) were dropped from the measure, leaving a final construct comprised of eight items. Based on an eigenvalue of 2.78, a one-factor solution was considered the optimal solution. The mean factor score was 0 (SD ⫽ 4.87; range ⫽ ⫺.51–3.92).
Results The sample for this study included 20,438 adolescents with a mean age of 16.14 years (SD ⫽1.76; range ⫽ 13–19). The sample demographics are presented in Table 1. Ego development explained 10% of the variance in violence in a direct effects model. The indirect effects model demonstrated that race, gender, and ethnicity all significantly influenced ego development. When controlling for age, girls have higher-level ego devel-
447
opment ( ⫽ .89) than do boys. African-American ( ⫽ ⫺.10) and Hispanic ( ⫽ ⫺.04) adolescents had significantly lower-level ego development than did white adolescents. The individual’s cognitive appraisal or self-perception explained 29% of the variance in ego development. Variables that significantly contributed to higher-level ego development were largely related to health and emotional factors. These included self-perception of physical fitness ( ⫽ .26), health status ( ⫽ .12), and coordination ( ⫽ .15). Adolescents with higher-level ego development reported lower feelings of depression ( ⫽ .30). Lower levels of ego development were associated with negative efficacy expectations ( ⫽ ⫺.05) and low self-esteem ( ⫽ ⫺.02). The exploration of social influences revealed that social bonding effected lower-level ego development ( ⫽ ⫺.08), as did a history of school suspensions ( ⫽ ⫺.04) and having to repeat a grade in school ( ⫽ ⫺.03). Finally, school connectedness was associated with higher-level ego development ( ⫽ .06).
Discussion Adolescents with insufficient ego integrity are ill prepared for the choices inherent in the natural course of the developmental process that requires adolescents to adapt to a series of transitions (e.g., school changes and puberty). This current study supports the rationale behind initiatives that bolster ego development during transitions from middle to high school. When significant adults are involved with adolescents in a supportive way, the development of greater self-determinism and better behavior self-regulation is expected. The findings in this study are consistent with those by Chung and Elias [9], who found a strong co-occurrence between low self-efficacy, particularly in one’s academic performance, and problem behavior. A secondary data analysis is always subject to the limitation that the measures in the study do not correspond with those in the literature. The measures of ego development and violence were correlated only weakly in this study, despite strong theoretical evidence to the contrary. The explanation for this association may result from the large sample size alone. In addition, the measures had demonstrated reliability and internal consistency but they had no previous empirical testing. Further research on item development and testing is required to confirm the findings in this study before recommendations for interventions can be made. Second, a well-designed
448
DiNAPOLI
study of ego development should involve a longitudinal cohort study that would fully explore changing cognitive ability as it affects ego development. Adolescence is characterized by a spectrum of cognitive abilities ranging from concrete thinking to the level of formal operations that could not be controlled for in this current study. Finally, familial contexts and structure have been reported in the literature to significantly affect ego development; these measures were not incorporated in this current study and are worthy of future study. This exploratory study provides theoretical and empirical evidence that the process of ego development is influenced by physical and emotional well-being, underscoring the potentially important role the health care practitioner may play in reducing violence. A well-designed future study of the antecedents to violent behavior must consider these important issues.
JOURNAL OF ADOLESCENT HEALTH Vol. 31, No. 6
2. 3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
References 1. Millstein SG, Ozer EJ, Ozer EM, et al. Research Priorities in Adolescent Health: An Analysis and Synthesis of Research
9.
Recommendations, Executive Summary. San Francisco: University of California National Adolescent Health Information Center, 2000. Loevinger J. Ego Development. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1976. Gfellner BM. Ego development and moral development in relation to age and grade level during adolescence. J Youth Adolesc 1986;15:147–63. Novy DM, Gaa JP. The association between patterns of family functioning and ego development of the juvenile. Adolescence 1992;27:25–36. Pecukonis EV. A cognitive/affective empathy training program as a function of ego development in aggressive adolescent females. Adolescence 1990;25:59 –75. Bearman PS, Jones J, Udry JR. The national longitudinal study of adolescent health: Research design. Available at: http:// www.cpc.unc.edu/projects/addhealth/design.html. Accessed August 12, 1998. Elliott D. Youth violence: An overview. Paper presented at the Aspen Institute’s Children’s Policy Forum “Children and Violence Conference”, Queenstown, Maryland, February 18 –21, 1994. Cox CL. The interaction model of client health behavior: Application to the study of community-based elders. ANS Adv Nurs Sci 1985;9:40 –57. Chung H, Elias M. Patterns of adolescent involvement in problem behaviors: Relationship to self-efficacy, social competence and life events. Am J Community Psychol 1996;24:771–84.