Relational Aggression and Physical Aggression Among Adolescent Cook Islands Students

• In Event: Supporting Positive Youth Development: Understanding and Resolving Issues of Belonging, Confusion, and Rejection

Abstract

This study explored perceptions of Physical Aggression (PA) and Relational Aggression (RA) of Year 7 to 13 students (n = 443) and their teachers in the Cook Islands, and the teachers’ strategies for managing aggression. Results from a mixed-methods approach yielded no gender difference in perpetration of PA. Girls were more likely than boys to perpetrate and be targets of RA, and more likely to act in prosocial ways. Boys were more likely to be targets of PA. PA and RA were highly correlated for both genders. Teachers’ perceptions of RA and PA behaviours corresponded with students’ perceptions, but views on effective strategies differed. Findings are discussed in terms of building healthy relationships by taking context and gender into consideration.

Authors

• Angela Page, Cook Islands Ministry of Education

• Lisa F. Smith, University of Otago