Deficits in the ability to accurately detect the emotional cues in others and interpret the emotions and intentions of others is linked to social aggression in children.

Precursor to Social Aggression in Children

Low risk children looked to their parents for social cues twice as fast from children who were high risk which suggest those children were reluctant to look to their parents for emotional support.

Rate of Emotional Cues in Low Risk Children

Children who looked to their parents for emotional cues were later seen to have more confidence in social referencing and positive social referencing in their peers. 

Social Referencing and Self-Esteem

Parents who use coercive techniques train their children to look elsewhere for emotional cues. 

Social Referencing and Coercive Techniques

Beginning as early as 1 year old, the child’s ability to pick up emotional cues from others in their environment.

Arizona State University

Patterson (1982, as cited in Kramer, 2013) argued that parental behavior alters the probability of child responses. Differences in family interactions of nonaggressive and aggressive children were found that aggressive children were twice as likely as nonaggressive children to persist in behavior following parental punishment.  Parent-child interaction is reciprocal and “teach” each other behaviors that lead to child aggression.  


Parent-Child Interaction Patterns

Reid, J. B., Patterson, G. R., & Snyder, J. J. (Eds.). (2002). Antisocial behavior in children and adolescents: A developmental analysis and model for intervention. American Psychological Association.

Reference: Antisocial Behavior in Children and Adolescents (2002)

Shermerhorn, Chow & Cummings  (2010, as cited in Kramer, 2013) described that when parental conflict effect children and adolescents, there is an increase emotional and behavioral problems. Additionally, during high levels of negative exchange, the children tend to blame themselves for their parent’s conflicts and feel emotionally insecure.


Inter-parental Conflict

Parent training worked better for younger than older children from. The understanding of the importance of intervening early in the developmental cycle, childhood to middle adolescence.

Importance of Parent Training

Hyperactive & Antisocial Behaviors, in Preschoolers

10-18 months
- Unresponsive Mother & Irritable Infant

24-32 Months
- Child is coercive & unskilled & Ineffective parenting and discipline, ineffective teaching, uninvolved parenting

48 Months
- Labelled “Hyperactive”

72 Months 
- Labeled “Antisocial” & Parents are antisocial

Progression Model

Strong correlation with hyperactivity and antisocial behavior. However, the relationship between the two is mediated by parental discipline practices.

Parent Discipline

Parental beliefs, values, norms, standards, attitudes about parenting are directly related to child outcomes. 

Consequently, failures in parenting such as parental rejection, parental depression, parental anger, parental low self-esteem, negative perceptions of the child are directly related to child deviant outcomes.

Parental Beliefs

Inadequate discipline and poor parental monitoring are key factors in the antisocial behavior. Discipline and the use of positive reinforcement play a central role in the development of a child’s competence.

Role in Coercion Theory

Fear tendencies for children and adolescents 

- Children ages 2-4, imaginary creatures and the dark
- Children ages 5-7, natural disasters, injury, animals
- Children ages 8-11, poor academic and athletic performance
- Adolescents 12-18, peer rejection



Developmental Considerations for Clinical Child Psychology

Social Referencing in Children

Insecure-Ambivalent - No interest in exploration, ineffective in receiving comfort from caregiver when angry or resists contact from them.

Insecure-Avoidant - Explores but does not seek affection when reunited with parent.

Secure - explore freely when parent is present. Looks to parent for emotional cues during signs of distress.


Insecure-Avoidant, Insecure Ambivalent, & Secure Attachment Descriptions

Parenting style greatly effects the impact of children’s ability to interact in their social environment in interpreting and gaining guidance in social cues. The variability in a parent’s consistency to show up and teach their kids how to problem solving will instill early patterns of behavior in the child that will influence a child’s achievement and interpersonal relations. 

Parental involvement

Social contextual factors had the greatest influence on the development of competence in toddlers. There was a greater effect in correlation when analyzing parental teaching style, social referencing, and attachment style in the development of child’s competence.                                                         

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