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Infant mental health as we enter the third millennium: Can we prevent aggression?
Author(s) -
Gauthier Yvon
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
infant mental health journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.693
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 1097-0355
pISSN - 0163-9641
DOI - 10.1002/imhj.10057
Subject(s) - aggression , disadvantaged , poverty , intervention (counseling) , mental health , psychology , early childhood , empathy , developmental psychology , physical abuse , early childhood intervention , suicide prevention , domestic violence , poison control , psychiatry , clinical psychology , medicine , environmental health , political science , law
At the end of a murderous century, the author attempts to reflect on the origins of violence and finds that several authors working with murderers hear them talk about their childhood marked by abuse and violence. Research on early manifestations of violence shows that physical aggression present by age five is still the best predictor of physical aggression at adolescence, but also that it is present even before age five, and can be controlled early. Poverty is seen to be an important factor of aggression, particularly in association with family characteristics. Within attachment theory research, insecure attachment, specifically the disorganized‐disoriented (D) pattern, is closely tied up to aggressive behavior at ages five and seven. Development of self‐regulation and empathy in very young children is closely tied up to the empathic caregiving of the environment. Early intervention in disadvantaged areas is shown to lead to long‐term positive results in projects that were built on intensive family support and early education services mostly rendered in home visits. Recommendations are made for continuation of research and early intervention in its various forms, and for the importance of social policies that help all parents with infants and young children, but particularly parents from high‐risk populations. ©2003 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.