From parent verbal abuse to teenage physical aggression?

Teenagers who were considered status offenders and criminal offenders were randomly matched to a group of teenage non-offenders for age, sex, ethnicity and family structure. The teens rated themselves for aggression, both physical and verbal. They gave their perceptions of physical and verbal aggression between their parents and between their parents and themselves. Substance abuse, runaway behavior and elements of teenage culture such as movies, music and videos were also compared between the two groups. The offenders reported an extreme use of verbal abuse in their families that did not exist for the non-offenders. The teens in the offender group were much more physically aggressive compared to their parents and to the teens and parents in the non-offender group. © 2000 Human Sciences Press, Inc.