Aggression in adolescents: causes and recommendations. Teenage aggression

What is aggression?

Aggression, the manifestations of which most often cause a negative reaction from the people observing it, can also have a positive effect. Such a moment is considered to be an opportunity to discharge overwhelming emotions and a person to defend his positions and increase self-esteem.

But aggressiveness still needs to be controlled so as not to create life problems for yourself. It manifests itself especially strongly in adolescence, so it is important to understand the reasons for its appearance.

A person’s aggression means that he wants to feel power over someone, to subjugate him. It can be both internal, directed inward (auto-aggression) and external, the object of which is other people or objects. It can also be obvious and hidden. Signs of obvious aggression are considered to be an increased degree of conflict, assault, the ability to put pressure on others, and slander. And the hidden form is manifested by withdrawal into oneself, attempts at suicide.

Adolescence and aggression

Any person can have such character traits, but they are especially noticeable in teenagers. This is a concern for many parents who notice their children being angry and uncontrollable.

Also read:

Why do teenagers become aggressive?

It is a rare child who enters adolescence and does not change his behavior. As a rule, he becomes more aggressive. This is due to the restructuring of his body, the change in the characters of the same teenagers around him, who during this period begin to assert themselves, prove something to each other, and try to earn respect in this way.

There are cases of violence against less aggressive peers, who are designated as outsiders and mocked in every possible way - both morally and physically. They create their own groups and do not allow strangers there. The relationship with parents also changes. They seem stupid to teenagers, and their opinions are considered not worthy of attention. Teenagers are capable of hurting anyone, without making allowances for age.

There are several reasons for aggression in adolescents. Five of them are considered the most studied and confirmed by specialists.

The first cause of aggression in adolescents

The first reason for aggressive behavior in adolescents is considered to be constitutional predisposition. That is, a person who is initially irritable, suspicious, withdrawn, anxious, for whom it is important what others think about him, can become such a person.

The second cause of aggression in adolescents

The second reason for adolescent aggressiveness lies in the formation of such behavior under the negative influence of printed (newspapers, magazines) and electronic (Internet) sources of information. Television and computer games that involve scenes of cruelty, violence, and criminal elements in the plot have a strong influence on character.

The third reason for aggression in adolescents

The third reason why a person with aggressive habits may develop may be the family where the child grows up. If there is misunderstanding between family members, rejection or too much care for children, their pampering by adults, frequent insults, the relationship between parents and children is not colored with positive emotional shades, then all these moments can create the ground for nurturing a future aggressor.

The fourth cause of aggression in adolescents

The fourth case when a teenager can become aggressive involves earlier initiation of alcohol or drug use. In one of these intoxications, he becomes so liberated that he does not even realize how cruel and unpredictable he becomes.

The fifth reason for aggression in adolescents

The fifth reason for the emergence of the aggressive character of adolescents is the state of the environment and society as a whole at the time of the formation of their personality. With an unfavorable environment, problems with radiation, noise, and an overabundance of negative information, preconditions for aggression appear. Life during economic and other crises, in the absence of fair laws, and a feeling of hopelessness can also lead to protest behavior in a teenager, which can result in aggression.

The main influence on a child is still exerted by the environment where he grows up. Parents must understand that their child has not grown up yet, although he is trying to prove it to everyone. This is a difficult transitional age, when a teenager most of all needs love and understanding in the family, which can reduce unnecessary anxieties and prevent his aggressiveness from developing.

Nowadays one can often encounter aggression and hostility on the streets. There has been a particularly significant surge in the spread of aggressiveness among schoolchildren. Hostile actions of minors are often aimed either at a specific child or group in order to show their strength, superiority or permissiveness.

Minors who feel unloved and unaccepted by society are increasingly showing immoral behavior through a way of recreating their inner world and inner pain. Trying to get rid of or reset internal negativity, adolescents express contradictions through aggressive behavior aimed at humiliating the weak. During the period of restriction of internal needs, tension accumulates inside the growing child. Unable to cope with internal stress, the teenager discharges himself through aggressive behavior.

Children who behave hostilely are labeled “difficult teenagers.” Often they are isolated from the group; those around them are not very concerned about what the child’s personality is experiencing inside; they predict a negative future for her. This reaction contributes to the development of self-will in them. If a student does not have psychological disorders, then his aggressive behavior can still be dealt with through the interaction of parents, teachers, and a psychologist. It is important not to neglect a minor child.

Causes

Hostility directed at someone weaker is an indicator of a problem within the child's character. Often, difficult children grow up in problematic families or have themselves suffered from personal humiliation. The object of their revenge is not the offender (he is much stronger than the minor), but a weaker person, more often these are younger children who are lower in social status and are raised in single-parent families.

The aggression of minors is caused by disturbances in the emotional sphere. When committing violence, a child cannot relate how physically and emotionally painful it is to the person he is abusing.

The inclinations to show empathy are formed in preschool age; parents bear responsibility for this.
This means that the cause of aggressive behavior is the irresponsibility of parents. This is not the only reason for the development of aggressiveness in minors.

Often, a child’s aggressiveness occurs under group pressure. The mechanism of pressure in a group can incline a minor to violence without his desire to exhibit this act. The initiator of violence, demonstrating to the group members that he is capable of much, which means he is “cool,” encourages everyone from the environment and convinces that strength is on their side.

Psychological studies have revealed that at three years old a child is at the peak of his aggressiveness. This is due to the fact that during this period it is incredibly difficult for children to learn prohibitions, as well as rules of behavior. It will depend on the parents how they will redirect the child’s inappropriate behavior into a peaceful direction. First of all, it depends on the behavior of the parents, how peaceful and friendly they are.

Thus, when describing the reasons for the emergence of aggressive behavior in adolescents, family upbringing should be taken into account. Indifference to children's problems and lack of support creates an emotional vacuum in a teenager, which develops into an inability to control emotions independently. During puberty, a child is subject to both emotional and psychological pressure and most needs the understanding of loved ones. Parents, passionate about work and career, ignoring the needs of the teenager, buy him off with various gifts and freedom of action.

Adults should develop in the child the ability to understand his own feelings and learn to control them. The teenager must see how to express negative manifestations more calmly, without harming others and, most importantly, himself.

The opposite of indifference in raising children is excessive, “blind” parental care. Such parental love neglects the teenager’s desire to make his own decisions.

Making independent decisions by your child helps you learn from your mistakes. Over time, a minor, surrounded by mega care, becomes uncontrollable with an obsessive desire to prove his independence to his parents. This is expressed in aggressive behavior with peers or with animals, much less often with oneself.

Also, the cause of aggressive behavior in adolescents is the dysfunction of the family itself. If a child has grown up surrounded by aggression since childhood, then it is possible that he will show a tendency towards identical behavior.

Of course, not every minor from a dysfunctional family grows up to be aggressive. However, the negative example set by the parent will have a negative impact on the development of the psyche of the growing child. The juvenile's aggression will target peers who have not had problems in the family.

At school, the influence of classmates and teachers has a special impact on the development of aggressive behavior in adolescents. Frequent conflicts with teachers and the academic workload unbalance the precarious psyche of a minor; unrequited love is added to all of the above.

Since society has an impact on the formation of behavior, the phenomenon of the emergence of aggressive behavior in a teenager may be the group of peers among whom the child communicates. It has been noticed that if yesterday a student was calm, then tomorrow he can “poison” a peer, thereby proving his “coolness” in order to be accepted into a group of significant peers.

The problem of aggressive behavior of adolescents is constantly discussed in society. The appearance of this personality quality is observed in representatives of both sexes.
Alcohol, smoking, obscene language, insults and bullying of others have become the norm today. Teenagers do not realize why they are being punished if everyone does it. It is already not uncommon for a minor from a good school to turn into an aggressive person. This often means that he is not receiving attention at home. The aggressive behavior of a teenager is a unique form of protest caused by non-acceptance of him as an individual.

Teenagers who show aggression are endowed with a low level of intelligence and tend to imitate. Such minors lack value orientations, have no hobbies, and are characterized by narrowness and instability in their hobbies. Such students are often embittered, anxious, rude, and suffer from egocentrism, as well as the expression of extreme self-esteem (positive or negative). Aggressive behavior of adolescents is a means of increasing independence, as well as their own prestige.

Prevention

The educational system pays sufficient attention to the prevention of antisocial behavior among young people. The problem of aggression among young people is considered the most discussed at school meetings. In educational institutions, a psychologist and a social pedagogue work with problem students.

Aggressive behavior of adolescents is more often noted in the context of school problems. For this reason, teachers should be attentive to schoolchildren and, having detected changes in children's behavior, should monitor negative manifestations in order to eradicate aggressiveness at an early stage.

The work of the psychological service is aimed at preventing illegal actions and preventing the development of adolescence. With all the qualified help of teachers, parents are the main people capable of raising a child correctly and not turning him into an aggressive person. Therefore, work to prevent the development of aggressive behavior should be carried out both among schoolchildren and among parents. Working together will give good results and be effective.

Correction

Teenage aggression is eliminated by the principles of correctional work presented below:

– it is necessary to establish contact with the teenager;

– to perceive and respect him as an individual without judgment;

- have a positive attitude towards his inner world.

Areas of correctional work include:

– teaching a teenager self-control skills (the ability to manage anger);

– training to reduce anxiety levels;

– formation of understanding of personal emotions, development;

– development of positive self-esteem.

When the first signs of aggression appear, we can recommend that the teenager take a break and divert his attention by switching to something else, more pleasant. It will be effective to close your eyes, count to ten, or mentally “fill your mouth with water” if there is a person in front of you who is annoying with his conversation. Such actions can prevent the expression of unnecessary hostility.

It is necessary to teach a teenager to treat those things in life that cannot be changed - calmly. Of course, you can get angry at them, but there is no point in it.

There is another way out: accept them, treat them more calmly. An important point is to avoid chronic nervous exhaustion and fatigue, since they underlie aggression and irritability.

When the first signs of fatigue appear, you should take a rest and introduce moments into your life that will delight you. It is important to teach a teenager to be attentive to himself, introduce positive changes in life, and try to be happy, since only such a person can be calm and balanced.

“My son is 14 years old. He became aggressive and uncontrollable. What should I do?"
A question from a desperate parent to a psychologist. The answer did not take long to arrive:
“It would be surprising if your son exhibited different behavior as a teenager.” Happy smiley at the end.
Probably, it was he who had to convince his mother that a teenager’s aggressiveness was normal and commonplace.

“My son is 14 years old. He became aggressive and uncontrollable. What should I do?"

A question from a desperate parent to a psychologist. The answer did not take long to arrive:

“It would be surprising if your son exhibited different behavior as a teenager.”. Happy smiley at the end.

Probably, it was he who had to convince his mother that a teenager’s aggressiveness was normal and commonplace.

Beyond normality

Should ordinary people be surprised then when the younger generation reacts aggressively to their comments, not only verbally, revealing all the delights of obscene language, but also physically.

Videos posted by teenagers themselves on YouTube testify to glaring facts of teenage aggressiveness. They are capable of many things:

hit an elderly man in the face with his fist, spit at him, ridicule him, throw him to the ground and kick him to death (grandfather did not allow him to smoke and tried to give a lecture on the dangers of smoking);

torture and mutilate stray cats and dogs (“What? Does anyone really need them? We’re ridding society of animal waste...”);

mock the homeless (“They are the scum of society, let them know their place!”);

beat up your teacher (“Grandma is senile, but she teaches physical education!”);

abuse a classmate (“Yes, he’s a major, so we rinsed him in the toilet of the school toilet so that he wouldn’t show off”);

to take revenge on a former lover (for example, one girl and a group of friends beat and humiliated) or a lover (for example, a teenager inflicted several knife wounds on his “unfaithful Juliet”).

Aggression and aggressiveness of children exceeds all acceptable standards. Are we really going to consider this the “norm” of teenage behavior?

What is aggressiveness

Psychologists distinguish between the concepts of aggression and aggressiveness. Aggression translated from Latin means “attack”, “hostility”. By aggression, first of all, we mean actions.

Some psychoanalysts view aggression as a continuation of the death instinct, the desire for destruction described by Freud.

The Austrian scientist Konrad Lorenz argued in his monograph that aggression is not evil, but a natural instinct that promotes the survival of the species, and is not at all aimed at its self-destruction.

Aggression researcher A. Bass defines it “as a reaction, as a physical action or threat of such an action on the part of one person, which reduces the freedom or genetic fitness of another person, as a result of which the other person’s body receives painful stimuli.”

Aggressiveness is a human property that manifests itself in readiness for aggressive behavior. Moreover, a certain predisposition to aggression can be either conscious of the individual or unconscious. Psychologists identify several types of manifestations of aggressive behavior:

2. Indirect.

3. Negativism.

4. Resentment, envy, hatred.

5. Suspiciousness.

6. Feelings of guilt.

7. Verbal aggression.

8. Irritation.

As we see, aggression has different faces; it can be directed at people around you, the external environment and at yourself.

So, aggression is, on the one hand, a consequence of aggressiveness, and on the other, it arises in the process of social learning.

Needed for life

Being aggressive is fashionable these days. It is believed that aggression is a unique mechanism of psychological protection of the individual from the influences of the outside world on him. In order not to be passive, dependent, unable to defend your own interests and goals, you need to be aggressive.

A mother in the sandbox is happy that her little one took a bucket from another baby:

Well done, he knows how to achieve his goals! He won't let himself be offended...

Another one teaches on the way to kindergarten:

If someone pushes you, give your change.

Dad enrolls a girl at three years old in martial arts classes so that she can stand up for herself.

It is clear that parents have good intentions, but do not see that they are teaching their children aggressive forms of behavior and do not teach them other ways to interact with others, other ways to solve problems. They often raise monsters with their own hands, and then don’t know what to do with them.

In adolescence, which is the transition from childhood to adulthood, the failures of upbringing become most obvious.

Teenagers

The urethral teenager shows aggression in the form of anger in case of injustice towards his pack, infringement of his free, unrestricted person, treatment of him out of rank - from top to bottom (for example, praise).

His anger manifests itself clearly; he knows no boundaries or boundaries. The urethral vector is not content with half measures. Here rage is rage, love is love.

At school, a urethral teenager is immediately visible, he smiles with a special smile, walks with a confident gait, often with an unbuttoned shirt, people involuntarily look after him. The teachers call him an informal leader, they give him an individual diary for assessing his behavior, he wears it, calmly gets bad marks and looks at the teachers with such an expression that one feels the complete powerlessness of adults in front of this daredevil.

The key to a urethral child is to be his regent, turn to him for support, help, advice, delegating your powers to him. Under no circumstances should you get involved in pulling the blanket over yourself, putting pressure on him, demanding unquestioning obedience - you will still lose.

It is best to make him a class leader; he will lead the team, and this is how you can most productively direct his energy in a positive direction. When there is a urethral child in the class, in fact, this is happiness; you can calmly entrust him with control over class discipline, aiming children at high educational achievements and good team cohesion.

He is merciful by nature, and making him your ally rather than your enemy is quite easy. He is not touchy, easy-going, understanding.

If there are two urethral leaders in the class, then it is natural that they will quarrel, and the conflict will be accompanied by aggression. It will all end in a fight where they will fight for life and death. It is better to prevent the cause for aggression in the bud - transfer them to different classes, assign them different territories and fields of activity.

An anal teenager, with the correct development of innate abilities, is an obedient, flexible child who respects the opinions of elders. The downside of an anal teenager is verbal aggression, rancor, vindictiveness, resentment, venting internal tension on pets, and sadism.

For a child, his mother is of great importance; if she pays little attention to him, does not praise him for the things he does, then he feels that he is not loved and is offended by everyone - first by girls, and then by women. He kicks his classmates in the butt, calls them dirty names, and can curse at the teacher.

The skinny child aggressively elbows everyone out of the way, he is ambitious, and quickly finds ways to get out of any situation. He shows aggression when he does not get what he wants, for example, a high mark (he was promised a bicycle for it), when his ambitious plans are infringed. He tries to argue with the teacher, “shakes” his license, but just as quickly breaks down, he just as quickly forgets about what he did. Leather workers demand equal conditions, unconsciously feeling that they will overtake everyone, they do not like to lose and their principle is: “All means are good for victory.”

It should be noted that the negative aspects of a skin teenager with improper development are the lack of self-discipline, the inability to control and limit oneself (for example, he cannot organize himself to come to school on time).

He behaves aggressively when he loses any material assets, because for him they are a certain foundation of psychological comfort.

A muscular teenager behaves aggressively towards others only if he is brought up incorrectly. From birth this child is extremely calm, his normal state is monotony. He begins to show aggression if he is put into a state of “war”, sent to the sports section, where he will only get every chance to get into a criminal environment, since sports do not develop the main thing in a muscleman - the ability to positively use one’s strength.

The correct development for such a child is accustoming him to work, even to hard physical work. By initiating his erogenous zone - the muscles, in this way he enjoys the process of work itself and subsequently becomes a “peaceful builder”.

A muscular teenager alone will never start a fight, he is guided by a skinner, and then he, together with his muscular comrades, is capable of committing violence. Dear, good-natured boy, they would never think badly of him...

It is important to be fed, well-fed, and well-rested for a good mood. Satisfaction of natural human needs for him is the greatest joy in life.

So, a group of teenagers attacked a passerby near the garages, beat him, and took his money. The skinny leader of the gang bought himself a watch with stolen funds, and the muscle men used the portion allocated to them - food, and simple, coarse food - sausages in dough, they picked up a large quantity. We're stuffed to death. Juvenile delinquents in dire need of occupational therapy.

The upper vectors have a significant impact on the aggressiveness of adolescents. adds emotionality to aggressive behavior: “Sasha threw a tantrum when she saw me with another girl, then grabbed her by the hair, screamed and fought.”

They are most susceptible to auto-aggression; they experience internal tension from interaction with the outside world deep within themselves until the accumulated tangle of contradictions and misunderstandings at one moment spills out in the form of suicide, unexpected for those around them.

A teenager always shows aggression verbally; he easily shouts down all other peers and his derogatory nicknames “stick” usually for life.

The vector adds thoughtfulness to the teenager’s aggressive behavior - not only will we not prove his involvement in the crime, but we will also not suspect him. An invisible, barely perceptible child, fulfilling his main function of “surviving at all costs”, exposing others, hides evidence of his own socially disapproved behavior.

So, a teenager’s aggressiveness is a wake-up call for parents and teachers. They are doing something wrong. We need to reconsider our attitude towards the child and the methods of his upbringing.

An effective means of helping to cope with the aggressive behavior of a teenager is for parents to understand two postulates:

1. It is necessary to raise a child correctly, in accordance with his innate vectors, so that he becomes a Human Being and absorbs culture.

2. It is necessary to be able to understand the underlying reasons for a teenager’s aggressiveness and teach him to remove negative feelings without causing damage, both mental and physical, to other people.

For example, realizing the value of silence for a sound child, parents need to create comfortable, calm conditions for him so that, when returning from school, he has the opportunity to be alone with himself.

Parental love becomes most effective and targeted if it is shown systematically, only then does the child feel that he is loved and this relieves aggression: hugging the skin teenager, praising the anal one, admiring the urethral one, creating a close emotional connection with the visual one, listening to the oral one, etc.

The aggressiveness of teenagers is not inevitable; much depends on us, their educators.

Proofreader: Valeria Starkova

Every year we see more and more aggressive behavior among teenagers. This problem is acute in society. Every parent tries to protect their child from negative influences from the very first days of life. After all, if this is not done, then with the onset of adolescence, aggressive behavior on the part of the child will immediately destroy his psychological state. To prevent this from happening, prevention of such behavior among adolescents should be mandatory at school and at home. A test will help check its presence.

The word “aggression” itself came into our speech from Latin. Translated as "attack". It is not surprising that modern society often uses this word in its everyday speech. Unfortunately, today aggressive and... Therefore, it is not surprising that psychologists are increasingly observing anger in the behavior of schoolchildren. Prevention of this condition is necessary to avoid the development of aggressive behavior in adolescents.

According to psychologists, aggressive behavior is based on causing intentional harm to another person. If signs of such functioning appear without a reason, then many experts agree that such a person suffers from an imbalance of hormones in the body or from Alzheimer's disease.

If the child does not have any medical prescriptions that would justify teenage aggression, then one of the reasons for such an action may be protest. It is through the method of protest that the child tries to defend his point of view, to assert himself as an individual. Protest can be expressed in refusal to comply with established rules and norms of behavior both at school and at home. In addition, aggression can be caused by the influence of bad company, social or economic inequality. But whatever the reason for aggressive behavior, the student’s parents should not ignore the problem. What to do with it? The advice of a specialist and the test recommended by him will help to determine the true cause of the problem.

As soon as constant irritation begins to clearly manifest itself in a child, parents and teachers need to join forces. Solving a problem requires meaningful actions; fighting hostility can lead to even more disastrous results. If you diagnose a teenager’s aggression in time, and most importantly, immediately begin to correct it, then you can safely hope for a good result.

The manifestation of bitterness is obvious. The main thing is that such deviation can be fought, it must be done. Modern psychiatry has very successful methods of such struggle. In order for them to be effective, it is necessary to establish as quickly as possible the main cause of this behavior. As soon as this happens, either drug treatment is immediately prescribed, or a visit to a psychologist will be required for a confidential conversation several times a week. It is worth remembering that it is best to eliminate the problem at an early age, since during adolescence it becomes uncontrollable.

What are the causes of aggressive behavior in a child?

Compared to several decades ago, today the problem of teenage aggression is more pressing. According to psychological research over the past few years, aggression in adolescence has been developing at high speed. This happens all over the world, despite the level of prosperity in a particular region.

Teenage aggression depends on. If there is an unfavorable atmosphere in relations between family members, this has a strong impact on the child’s psyche.

Today the media actively promote aggression, cruelty, and violence. At the same time, modern cinema does not refute this, but, on the contrary, supports it. All this information has a significant impact on the child’s psyche. That is why teenagers conclude that with the help of aggression they can assert themselves as individuals and rise in the eyes of their peers.

Psychologists from general education institutions note that aggressive behavior is observed not only among children in middle and high school, but also among children in primary school. Medical institutions specializing in psychological disorders now have a large flow of patients. This can be explained by the fact that 20 years ago, the aggressive behavior of a schoolchild was attributed to inattention to him. It has now been scientifically recognized that aggression in children and adolescents is a psychiatric disease that requires a certain type of treatment.

What are the reasons for irritation in teenagers?

The main reason for the emergence of an aggressive form of action, according to psychologists, is drawing attention to one’s personality. Aggression is a kind of cry for help. As a rule, under the guise of aggression, the child tries to hide all his internal complexes.

A teenager may become irritable from lack of attention.

Whatever the signs of anger, they must be eradicated immediately. The causes of teenage aggressive behavior are:

• crisis that occurs at this age;
• bad environment in the society in which the child is located;
• complexes that appear when a teenager’s views do not correspond with his peers;
• genetic inheritance;
• hormonal imbalances in the body;
• bad habits associated with the use of alcohol or drugs.

Manifestation of hostility in a child and its causes

Teenage aggression in some cases may be based on social cues. That is, if a girl shows aggression when communicating with a young man, then he may regard this as a call to use physical force.

During psychological testing of adolescents, the following types of aggression were identified:

• aggression using physical force;
• indirect aggression;
• aggression through the influence of verbal communication;
• negative attitude;
• touchy behavior;
• mistrust.

Correcting aggressive behavior in adolescents is not an easy task. It is especially difficult to deal with the anger of boys, since in them it manifests itself much more and more often than in girls. Adolescent aggressiveness in most cases depends precisely on the fact that the child receives too little love, care and attention from his parents. A family that lives by distrust of each other, mutual insults and frequent humiliation is raising a socially inadapted child. It is very difficult for such a student to go through the period of adaptation at school and establish communication with peers. As a rule, a “disliked” teenager tries to convey an aggressive form of action to society.

The form of aggression for boys and girls has significant differences. If for girls the use of verbal irritability is enough for their own satisfaction, then for boys the use of physical force seems to be the norm. This division of forms of aggressive behavior for adolescents begins during the transition period (at the age of 14-15 years).

Psychological characteristics of a schoolchild

Adolescence can be called a critical period in the life of absolutely every person. At this time, the teenager begins to change his psychological attitude towards life. And puberty has a significant impact on the functioning of hormones. - this is a time of contradictions with the whole world. He sees enemies in people who try to control the child during this period. This applies to both teachers and parents. Aggression in adolescence has its own psychological characteristics. They depend on what place the aggressive teenager occupies in society and what socio-economic status he has.

Psychologists distinguish 2 concepts “aggression” and “aggressiveness”. Adolescent aggression is a psychological condition that can be corrected. But aggressiveness, in turn, is a character trait that can only be broken at a young age. But this is almost impossible to do, since during this period it is very difficult to identify aggressiveness. If you still managed to do this, then by breaking the child’s character, you can “destroy” him as a person. Therefore, correcting the aggressive behavior of adolescents requires a competent approach to the problem and certain efforts.

Temporal differences in puberty between girls and boys exist. Therefore, the psychological characteristics of their aggression also differ.

Aggressive functioning and its forms

Aggression in adolescents is divided into verbal and physical forms.

The verbal form of irritability is inherent in the behavior of girls. They can easily humiliate and insult their opponent verbally. Verbal attacks can be either direct or indirect. A form of anger with the use of physical violence is more often. Boys use direct physical hostility to physically humiliate them. If a teenager causes only moral damage to the object of his bullying, then in this case he resorts to indirect physical aggression.

The most dangerous form of aggression is real. When used, the teenager causes serious physical injury.

Who and how can diagnose aggression in a teenager

Only a specialist can identify aggressive behavior in a teenager. This type of diagnosis is carried out by psychologists or psychotherapists. The teenager only needs to pass a certain test. Thanks to this method, it is possible to almost accurately determine whether aggression in a child’s behavior really needs to be corrected or whether he is experiencing mood swings at the hormonal level.

As practice shows, the teenager categorically refuses to admit that his behavior is excessively insolent. He expresses his protest by refusing to communicate with a psychologist, and even more so by refusing to take tests. Diagnosis of aggressiveness cannot be done by force, so the specialist and parents need to find the right words for the teenager to make him want to take the test.

The subconscious of any schoolchild of this age does not want to accept the morals established by society, he wants to establish his own rules. During this period, the older generation is obliged to find the right ways of approach, to engage in the prevention of aggressive behavior of adolescents, and not to impose their point of view.

Why has the aggressive behavior of teenagers become so active in the 21st century? Is it not the influence of TV, the Internet, computer games, modern films, virtual reality, addictions? Or maybe teenage aggression is influenced, basically, by the modern, often inharmonious family, methods of education and child-parent relationships, school, with emotionally and psychologically indifferent teachers, and the street, which is sometimes given to teenage children?

Let's take a closer look at the reasons for the aggressive behavior of adolescents, methods for correcting this behavior and preventing spontaneous, uncontrolled, and often unconscious aggression in adolescents.

Aggressive behavior of adolescents: causes, correction and prevention of teenage aggression

Aggression itself has partially innate roots in every person, but what kind of aggressive behavior will be in a given situation, and what internal or external stimuli (stimulants and provocations) activate it - directly depends on those acquired in the external environment (family, kindergarten) , school, on the street, the virtual world, films and books), attitudes, internal beliefs of a person: an adult, a child or a teenager.
In a word, the aggressiveness of a teenager, and an adult too, depends on the life scenario - programmed thinking, feeling and behavior in a given situation, during a particular life event.

Aggressive behavior, like deviant, anti and asocial, delinquent, in adolescents does not arise on the basis of the innate instinct of aggression, which works on the principle of protecting human life and health in dangerous situations, in the form of an attack on the source of danger (the innate mechanism of the psyche “fight or flight” ).

For example, a teenager, due to his fragile psyche and still immature personality, in the event of a real or far-fetched (imaginary) danger (here the purpose of the alleged threat is unimportant: life, health, social status, personality, his “I”...) may have a deep conviction - “to run away.” shameful, humiliating, etc.”, therefore the saving reflex “fight or flight” is launched in the direction of the attack (“hit”), i.e. a teenager shows aggression towards another person, animal or inanimate object (phenomenon).

And it doesn’t matter what kind of teenage aggression it will be: emotional and mental - verbal (verbal - threats, swearing...), non-verbal (aggressive facial expressions, postures, gestures), physical (overt attack with the aim of causing physical harm, say, beatings), or hidden aggression, indirect (in the form of gossip, negative conversations behind one’s back, etc.), as well as more primitive child and adolescent aggressiveness in the form of negativism (aggressive opposition, such as doing everything out of spite, taking revenge, etc.).

The main causes of teenage aggression

The main reasons for teenage aggression do not lie in negative television broadcasting, the Internet, and not even in computer games or violent action films, horror films... Although, these sources of information still play an indirect role in strengthening the feeling of anger, and the activation of aggression based on it.

Aggression in teenage behavior is caused, first of all, by negatives embedded in the child’s psyche from the outside, colored by dislike for oneself and other people, sometimes hatred, with the prevailing emotion of anger and its derivatives (from mild irritability to rage), and, accordingly, the teenager’s aggression in behavioral patterns. reactions to, often incorrectly, illusively interpreted events.

It is precisely that teenage aggressive behavior that does not fit into the framework (rules and norms of behavior) of society, and is acquired, programmed in the form of internal attitudes, deep-seated beliefs about oneself, other people and the world as a whole, and, accordingly, distorted, stereotypical thinking and feeling and behavior.

For example, aggression against an enemy of our homeland, or a rapist, pedophile, kidnapper (child abductor), sadist, serial maniac, etc., even if contrary to the law, is morally justified by society. These are also externally imposed attitudes and beliefs - this is not innate aggressiveness and anger.

Such acquired aggression and anger in adolescents begins to develop from early childhood, through the so-called “parental programming” (upbringing), child-parent relationships, methods and styles of education.
It is precisely when there is disharmony in the relationship with the child in the family that the latter can withdraw into himself, into films, television shows of an incomprehensible kind, into computer games and the virtual world of the Internet - the latter will not create aggressiveness in a teenager, but will strengthen and develop it.

Elementarily, children can copy aggressiveness from adults close to them and important to them, and it is not necessary that this aggression is directed at the child - it can be aggressive behavior in the family between mom and dad, the younger and older generations, with neighbors, even aggressive criticism of films, politicians, life in general, can leave an imprint on the child’s psyche and make him an aggressive teenager and adult.

And dislike, disrespect for the child on the part of important, significant people, non-acceptance of him as a person, lack of attention to the baby, sensory deprivation, misunderstanding of him and lack of psychological support, and even more so direct psychological or physical aggression aimed at children, will naturally play their role evil role - a teenager can become aggressive, especially towards the weak (everyone can show aggression towards a cat, but what about an Amur tiger?! Although here, too, a person, as the “ruler” of the world, can use a weapon...).

Psycho-correction of aggressive behavior of adolescents

Psychological correction of aggressive behavior in adolescents is quite complex. The problem is not that it is difficult to reprogram the child’s attitudes and beliefs, which lead to unreasonable anger and aggression. The problem is that psychotherapeutic work with the whole family is necessary, and also, the difficulty is that it is often quite difficult to persuade a teenager to visit a psychologist or psychotherapist, especially together with his parents. (an attitude like “I’m not crazy”).

Changing the family emotional and psychological climate and relationships between parents, parents and grandparents, etc., and, of course, the child-parent relationships themselves is the most important task in correcting aggressive behavior in a teenager.

The main thing here is not to do, not to change anything abruptly and head on (directly). Only a mild, indirect influence on changing the thinking, feeling (anger) and, accordingly, behavior (aggression) of a teenager (otherwise, defense, negativism, resistance will work, possibly with the activation of aggressiveness).

Psychological work with the family and with the teenager himself, although not burdensome, is not fast, but the results will not keep you waiting. After a course of psychotherapy, the teenager will stop being aggressive, and the whole family will become harmonious and happy.

Prevention of aggression in adolescents

The same applies to the prevention of aggression in adolescents - first of all, it is necessary to create harmonious relationships in the family, preferably starting from the moment the mother of the future teenager is pregnant.

Or, at least start creating a healthy emotional and psychological climate in the family while your child is still literally a “child” (the transition to adolescence begins at about 10-11 years old).

Read psychological articles for parents and educators.

You need, first of all, to realize your mistakes in upbringing and relationships between mom and dad, grandma and grandpa, mom and grandma (grandfather), dad and grandma (grandfather), etc. Choose the right styles of parenting and interaction with the child himself. If negativism already appears and