Aggressive behavior is thought to be ingrained through reinforcement, punishment and imitation.
Aggression cannot be mentioned in infancy. If it is around 1 year old, a child can take any toy by pulling it from the hand of the opposite child. However, in this case, we still cannot talk about aggression. Because the purpose of the child here is not to hurt the other person, but only to take his toy. So the aggressive behavior seen here is a tool to get the toy. Aggression is handled in two ways in social psychology. The first is behavior to hurt others and to dominate over them. For example, a child may hit a friend to get revenge. The other type of aggression is the way used to achieve the goal. For example, while trying to take the toy from his friend’s hand, the child may drop his friend on the ground, but the harm here was not done intentionally or knowingly. When examining aggression in children, attention should be paid to these two forms.
At an early age, there may often be problems with sharing toys and other possessions. These aggressive behaviors at first are considered normal. Aggression in this period can be considered as a step of social development. Between the ages of 2 and 4, it is seen that aggressive behaviors first increase and then decrease. Behaviors such as hitting and kicking decrease after the age of 3, while verbal insults and attacks increase. However, individual differences between children in aggression should not be forgotten. And in general, it was found that boys gave more physical responses than girls, while girls gave more verbal responses. It is also seen that anger and aggression are directed towards siblings and peers rather than adults.
Preschool children seem to be affected by the aggression around them. In other words, they imitate the models around them. In a sense, aggression can be said to be contagious. Children learn aggressive behavior by imitating adults, other children, or aggressive characters on television.
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Source; Artan, Ismihan; Bayhan, Pınar (2004) Child Development and Education, Ankara
