Strain, negative emotions and antisocial behavior in adolescence from the perspective of the general strain theory

Author(s)

Liandra Aparecida Orlando Caetano

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: Ribeirão Preto.
• Institution: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (PCARP/BC)
• Defense date: 2023-04-04

Examining board members

Marina Rezende Bazon; Ana Carina Stelko Pereira; Patricia Leila dos Santos

• Advisor: Marina Rezende Bazon

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to contribute to the knowledge about the relations between the experience of strain/stressful experiences and antisocial behavior in adolescence, adopting, for this purpose, the General Strain Theory (GST). The proposal came from the interest in better understanding juvenile behavior, specifically those related to law violations, seeking to identify motivations and underlying processes. Within this, the TGT framework was adopted for proposing that tension experiences - associated with the presence of negative stimuli and/or withdrawal of positive stimuli (in addition to difficulties in achieving goals) created conditions for the emergence of negative emotions and these - especially anger and frustration - would be the motivation for antisocial behavior (as a form of coping and tension release), through certain background variables - modulators and moderators. To this end, three studies were conducted. Study 1 consisted of an integrative literature review. Entitled, Offenses in adolescence: integrative review of studies from the perspective of the General Strain Theory retrieved existing research on antisocial behavior/delinquent behavior in adolescence from the perspective of the General Strain Theory (GST). It was possible to verify that many experiences are a source of tension: adverse childhood experiences, living or witnessing violence, perceptions of injustice, social and racial discrimination, conflicts in school and family relationships. Study 2 was also an integrative review. Entitled Participation in bullying and implication in adolescent delinquency: an integrative literature review, this study focused on recent empirical productions aimed at investigating the relationship between school violence or more specifically bullying, and antisocial/delinquent behavior during adolescence, considering the high prevalence of school violence and the claims that it is an important source of stress for young people. The review showed that the majority of studies identified that the experience of bullying, as victim and as aggressor, is significantly related to involvement in offending, even when controlling for personal, family, or school variables. Study 3, denominated Stressful experiences, anger, self-control, and antisocial behavior in adolescence: a perspective of the General Strain Theory, consisted in testing in the Brazilian sociocultural context some of the relations presupposed by the GST. This study sought to verify the relationship between negative family experiences and participation in bullying, and the manifestation of antisocial behavior (divergent and delinquent), considering the intervening levels of anger and self-control in a sample (n=102) of 9th grade adolescents/students from public schools in a city in the interior of the state of São Paulo. The adolescents answered the instruments: Questionnaire about Youth Behavior (QCJ); Battery of school violence (BEVESCO); Delaware School Climate (DSCS); State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI); Self-Control Scale (EAC). Descriptive and simple and adjusted logistic regression analyses were performed. As result, it should be indicated that the rates of antisocial behavior were low. The analyses, however, showed that participation in bullying was shown to be related to anger and antisocial behavior, as well as to low self-control. Specifically, it was denoted that having been a perpetrator of school violence, exhibiting anger as a trait, and lower self-control seem to interact and foster the conditions for antisocial behavior (offenses and frequent alcohol use). It is considered to have advanced in understanding the focused relationships, with relevant indications for future studies, in the same direction, with larger and more diverse samples. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 20/09134-3 - Negative emotions, self-control and violent behavior in adolescents: an exploratory study from the perspective of the general strain theory
• Grantee: Liandra Aparecida Orlando Caetano
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master