Developmental Trajectories of Relational Aggression

This chapter reviews the literature pertaining to change in relational and other forms of nonphysical aggression across the lifespan. We attempt to summarize the state of the field by examining developmental trends, stabilities of behavior, and developmental trajectories of behavior. Note that given the strong conceptual overlap in relational, indirect, and social forms of aggression, we include studies that focus on any of these three forms of aggression. As the number of studies actually examining the developmental trajectories in these behaviors remains sparse, particularly when compared to what is known about physical aggression, we outline the limitations in the research and make suggestions for future directions of inquiry.