Testosterone and cortisol modulate the effects of empathy on aggression in children.

This study aimed to analyze the potential moderating role of circulating testosterone, cortisol and estradiol levels on the attenuating effect of empathy on aggression in children. Participants were 139 children (80 boys and 59 girls) from the 3rd year of primary school (age 8). Their aggressive behavior was measured by the Direct and Indirect Aggression Scale, an instrument which uses peer rating; empathy was measured using the Empathy Quotient-Child Version. Hormone levels (testosterone, cortisol and estradiol) were analyzed using an enzymoimmunoassay technique in saliva samples. A regression analysis revealed an interaction effect of empathy x testosterone in girls, with higher levels of empathy corresponding to lower levels of aggression at both moderate and low testosterone levels. In boys, an interaction effect of empathy x cortisol was observed, with lower levels of empathy corresponding to higher aggression levels at moderate and high cortisol levels, and higher levels of empathy corresponding to lower aggression levels again at moderate and high cortisol levels. Our results indicate the importance of taking the interaction of psychological and biological factors into account in order to gain greater insight into the complex mechanisms underlying aggressive behavior.

Developmental trajectories of aggressive behavior in children from ages 8 to 10: The role of sex and hormones.

OBJECTIVES: This study explored the developmental trajectory of aggressive behavior from age 8 to age 10 in school-aged children, taking into account possible sex differences, as well as the involvement of certain hormones. METHODS: Participants were 90 children (49 boys and 41 girls) from four schools. At the beginning of the study, the children were 8-year old and were in 3rd grade of primary school. The second data collection phase was carried out two years later (at age 10) when the children were in 5th grade (primary). Their aggressive behavior was measured by the Direct and Indirect Aggression Scale, an instrument which uses peer rating. Hormone levels, testosterone, cortisol and estradiol were analyzed using an enzymoimmunoassay technique in saliva samples. RESULTS: The results revealed a difference in aggressive behavior between the ages of 8 and 10, in boys only, who were found to be more aggressive at age 10. A regression analysis revealed that cortisol and estradiol contributed to explaining the changes observed in aggressive behavior in boys. Boys whose cortisol levels rose most between the ages of 8 and 10 were also those whose aggressive behavior increased most during the same timeframe. Moreover, boys whose estradiol levels rose most between the ages of 8 and 10 were also those whose aggressive behavior decreased most during the same timeframe. CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlight the importance of studying aggressive behavior from a longitudinal perspective, taking into account sex differences and biological measures.

Parenting styles and hormone levels as predictors of physical and indirect aggression in boys and girls.

This study examines the relationship between parenting style, androgen levels, and measures of physical and indirect aggression. Peer ratings of aggression were obtained from 159 eight-year-old children (89 boys and 70 girls). Parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian or permissive) were assessed using the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ).Saliva samples were obtained from children and assayed for testosterone and androstenedione concentrations. A regression analysis revealed that high testosterone levels were associated with a higher level of physical aggression in boys with authoritarian mothers. Testosterone was also found to moderate the relationship between father's authoritarian parenting and physical aggression in girls, with both moderate and high levels being significant. In relation to indirect aggression, moderate and high levels of testosterone were associated with higher levels of this type of aggression in girls with permissive mothers. Our results highlight the importance of taking into account the interaction of biological and psychosocial variables when investigating aggressive behavior.

Metodología en la investigación transcultural: perspectivas actuales / Methodology in cross-cultural research: Current perspectives

El desarrollo de una metodología específica para la realización de estudios transculturales tiene como objetivo responder a una serie de problemas a los que el investigador se enfrenta cuando pretende comparar grupos culturales. El proceso de operacionalizar el constructo cultura en sus indicadores, debe realizarse atendiendo a tres etapas (van de Vijver y Leung, 1997b): la primera se refiere a la elección de las variables contextuales que permitan interpretar de forma adecuada las diferencias culturales; la segunda tiene que ver con el diseño del estudio en función del cual se realizará la medición de las variables contextuales y, finalmente, la tercera etapa hace referencia a la estrategia de análisis estadístico requerida para evaluar en qué medida las variables contextuales explican las diferencias transculturales. En este sentido, la investigación transcultural se enfrenta al control de una serie de sesgos que, si bien son comunes a toda investigación, presentan características específicas en este contexto. El objetivo del presente trabajo consiste en presentar las principales fuentes de sesgo a las que se enfrenta la investigación transcultural, asociadas básicamente a los materiales y al procedimiento utilizados para la recogida de los datos así como a los diferentes estilos de respuesta que presentan los sujetos en las distintas culturas. Asimismo, abordaremos las principales estrategias de muestreo y de análisis estadístico que se utilizan en la investigación transcultural, tomando como referencia una propuesta de clasificación de los estudios transculturales en función de dimensiones que condicionan la formulación de hipótesis y el método utilizado en el estudio (AU)

The goal of the development of a specific methodology to carry out transcultural studies is to answer a set of problems that the researcher must face when trying to compare cultural groups. The process of operationalizing the construct culture into its indicators must be done in the following three stages (van de Vijver y Leung, 1997b): the first one concerns the selection of the context variables that allow us to interpret, in a proper way, cultural differences; the second one is concerned with the design of the study that will be used to measure the context variables and, finally, the third stage concerns the statistical strategy that will be required to evaluate to what extent context variables explain transcultural differences. In this sense, transcultural research faces up to the control of a set of biases that, even though common to all researches, have specific characteristics in this context. The goal of the present work is to show the main sources of bias that transcultural research faces, referring basically to the materials and the procedure used to collect the data as well as to the different styles of answering which subjects show in different cultures. In the same way, we will tackle the main sampling strategies and statistical analyses that are used in transcultural research, taking as a reference a proposal to classify transcultural studies depending on dimensions that determine the formulation of hypothesis and the method used in the study (AU)

Theoretical and Methodological aspects of cross-cultural research / Aspectos Teóricos y Metodológicos de la Investigación Transcultural

This monograph is organized around four topics, all involving the relationship between culture and psychosocial processes: a) culture and sociopsychological explanations; b) developments related to cultural dimensions and value syndromes; c) culture, emotional feelings and expression, and d) culture and emotional coping with traumatic events (AU)

Este monográfico se organiza alrededor de cuatro temas, todos ellos vinculados a la relación entre la cultura y los procesos psicosociales: a) cultura y explicaciones psicosociales; b) los desarrollos teóricos y empíricos sobre las dimensiones culturales y los síndromes de valores; c) la relación entre cultura, vivencias y expresión emocional, y d) la cultura y el afrontamiento emocional con hechos traumáticos (AU)