Aggressive school troublemakers and victims: A longitudinal model examining the pivotal role of self-concept

Aggressive Troublemaker (getting into physical fights, getting into trouble , being seen as a troublemaker, and being punished for getting into trouble ) and Victim (being threatened with harm, not feeling safe) factors were re lated to 3 components of self-concept (General, Same Sex, and Opposite Sex) based on the large, nationally representative National Education Longitudi nal Study of 1988 database. At 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-grade levels, Troublem aker and Victim constructs were reasonably stable over time and moderately positively correlated (many students were both troublemakers and victims). The Victim factor was negatively correlated with self-concept and had negat ive effects on subsequent self-concept. Whereas the Troublemaker factor was also correlated somewhat negatively with self-concept, it had small positi ve effects on subsequent self-concept: Low self-concept may trigger trouble making behavior in a possibly successful attempt to enhance subsequent self -concept. Although boys had higher Troublemaker and Victim scores than did girls, the effects of these constructs on subsequent self-concepts were sim ilar for boys and girls.