Paula J. Fite

• University of Kansas

Emerging adults exposed to childhood maltreatment may exhibit differences in emotion reactivity (ER), which may be influenced by maltreatment subtype and biological sex. The current study investigated the links between specific types of childhood maltreatment and ER in a sample of 498 emerging adults. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was implemen...

The extant literature suggests the importance of belonging in preventing and reducing internalizing symptoms. However, it is not yet clear which sources of belonging are most distinctly and robustly linked to symptoms of depression and anxiety. Further, the associations between various sources of belonging when also considering forms of peer victim...

Although peer victimization is relatively common in childhood and adolescence, these experiences can be quite harmful to an individual. Oftentimes, parents and caregivers are unaware that peer victimization is occurring, and when they do know, it is difficult to know how to help. The current chapter focuses on describing the types of victimization...

Recent shifts in societal attitudes toward cannabis have led to a dramatic increase in consumption rates in many Western countries, particularly among young people. This trend has shed light on a significant link between cannabis use disorder (CUD) and pathological reactive aggression, a condition involving disproportionate aggressive and violent r...

Relatively little is known regarding factors that may mitigate the strength of the associations between forms of aggressive behavior and peer victimization. The goal of the current study was to investigate prosocial behavior as a moderator of these links over a 2-year period during middle childhood. Participants included 410 third-grade students (5...

Research has considered the role of social learning in substance use and determined that social influences are powerful determinants of substance initiation. However, the relationships between peer, sibling, and parent behaviors and e-cigarette initiation among early adolescents, and rural youth in particular, have yet to be examined. The present s...

Background More research is needed to improve measurement selection and to better understand informant differences in reports of reactive and proactive aggression. Objective Toward this goal, the current study evaluated the psychometrics (i.e., reliability, factor structure, and validity) and correlates of two measures of reactive and proactive ag...

School connectedness plays a critical role in multiple aspects of child development. The purpose of this study was to operationalize school connectedness as a multidimensional construct and further assess whether this construct was measured similarly across gender and grade level among a sample of upper elementary school children (age M = 9.57; N =...

There is limited research examining peer victimization (PV) experiences in early childhood, particularly during the transition from preschool to kindergarten. Given the gaps in the PV literature among this young population and the need for earlier PV prevention and intervention efforts, the current study advances the literature by examining: (1) th...

The following chapter provides an overview of the common forms (i.e., physical, relational, and cyber) and functions (i.e., proactive and reactive) of aggression. Descriptions of these aggression subtypes are provided, including rates and developmental trends, etiological factors, and adjustment outcomes. Theoretical and conceptual models are outli...

Although siblings are known to contribute to one’s socialization experiences, research examining sibling victimization remains limited. One area in need of examination is the links between coping strategies and sibling victimization, as extant research suggests that how one responds to negative social interactions is associated with subsequent adju...

Unique challenges associated with dual involvement in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems are well documented. However, there is a paucity of research focusing on the out-of-home placement experiences of youth involved in the justice system and implications for relevant outcomes. The current study examined out-of-home placement experienc...

Background Despite the prevalence and negative outcomes associated with simultaneous alcohol and cannabis use (i.e., marijuana [SAM] use, i.e., so that the effects of both alcohol and cannabis overlap) among college students, there is no comprehensive measure of SAM use, with past research relying on single items. The present study aimed to develop...

ARTICLE FREE TO ACCESS AT: https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2022.2158842. In this editorial statement, we briefly delineated a series of observations, guidelines, and directions for future research focused on the most common outcome of multi-informant assessments of youth mental health. Discrepancies commonly occur between estimates of youth mental...

Background Outcomes associated with adolescent alcohol use with parental permission are not well understood. The current study examined associations between alcohol use with and/or without parental permission and past year cigarette and marijuana use among high school students. Methods High school students reported on alcohol use (with and without...

Further research is needed to evaluate associations between perceived containment and proactive and reactive aggression to further inform prevention and intervention approaches. The current study advanced extant research by examining associations between perceived containment and overt and relational subtypes of proactive and reactive functions of...

Background Justice-involved youth report experiencing elevated levels of peer victimization. However, the links between the various forms of peer victimization and specific types of charges are unclear.Objective The current study advances our understanding of peer victimization among justice-involved youth by examining how experiencing overt and re...

Studies informing ways to target aggression in youth, particularly through the identification of internal patterns predictive of concurrent and future levels of aggression, could be particularly beneficial. To this end, the current study surveyed 216 elementary‐aged children on topics of perceived containment (i.e., perceived ability of authority f...

Children who are victimized by their peers are at increased risk of developing emotional difficulties and disorders (e.g., mental health diagnoses); conversely, children experiencing emotional difficulties may also be more likely to experience peer victimization. Sleep quality could serve as a protective buffer or risk factor in these longitudinal...

The current study used a person‐centered approach to identify classes of after‐school activities that may reduce the harmful effects, including anxiety and depression, of community violence exposure (CVE) in Latino youth. Participants in the current study included 144 students (54.2% male, ages 14–19) who were recruited from a charter high school i...

A rich line of criminological theories and research has suggested that individual characteristics may be important to predicting criminal activity. However, there is limited research examining how individual characteristics may be related to the type of crime committed (e.g. violent, sex, drug). To provide guidance to these questions, the current s...

As the rate of death by suicide in youth ages 6 to 12 rises, it is imperative to better understand informant discrepancies when screening for suicidality. Accordingly, this study investigated associations among youth-, caregiver-, and clinician-reports of youth’s suicidality and their associations with youth- and caregiver-reports of youth’s depres...

Suicide among elementary school-age youth is vastly understudied despite being a major health concern. This study utilized mediation and moderation models to elucidate the nature of risk factors for suicide by examining the effect emotion dysregulation (of anger, sadness, and worry) has on the relation between ADHD symptoms (hyperactivity/impulsivi...

Parental psychological control is linked to adjustment difficulties, but the links to specific adjustment outcomes and factors that contribute to these links warrant further investigation given some mixed findings in the literature. The current study sought to expand the literature by examining associations between parental psychological control an...

Youth involved in the juvenile justice system are at risk for a multitude of psychological and adjustment difficulties. Unfortunately, oftentimes these individuals do not receive the services needed. Attitudes toward mental health services contribute to whether an individual receives help; yet little is known about factors that are associated with...

Research evaluating the deleterious effects of negative sibling dynamics has been limited, likely due to social acceptance of sibling conflict. This is a notable omission in the literature, as siblings play a major role in youth development. The current study sought to advance the literature by longitudinally examining the bidirectional links betwe...

Detained youth are at an increased risk of developing internalizing symptoms. Belongingness theory suggests that youth’s perception of belonging within their family may further elucidate this risk. In addition, alexithymia may explicate symptoms, yet these constructs have yet to be evaluated in detained youth. The present study examined the interac...

Despite sibling victimization being a relatively common occurrence, there is a dearth of research examining the outcomes associated with this interpersonal stressor, including internalizing symptoms. The current study sought to advance the literature by longitudinally examining the links from sibling victimization to depression and anxiety symptoms...

Background Child maltreatment has emerged as an important risk factor for substance use. However, despite evidence consistently demonstrating that substance use peaks during emerging adulthood, less is known about the specificity of maltreatment effects on substance use during this critical developmental period. Further, the factors that might play...

This study sought to examine percentages of youth who use alcohol with and/or without parental permission and associations with symptoms of depression and anxiety. At least one in four youth indicated use with parental permission, with approximately 12.7% of youth indicating that they use alcohol both with and without parental permission. Those who...

Background Although the link between substance use and criminal behavior is well-established, associations between the use of specific substances and specific criminal charges remains unclear. That is, there are mixed findings in the literature, and the majority of extant literature focuses only on associations between alcohol and marijuana use and...

The Children's Emotion Management Scales (CEMS) are widely used measures of children's emotion regulation strategies in response to three specific emotions: sadness, anger, and worry. Original factor analyses suggested a three-factor subscale structure for each emotion: inhibition, dysregulation, and coping (Zeman et al., 2001, 2002, 2010). However...

BACKGROUND Growing evidence suggests that reactive aggression is more strongly associated with youth internalizing symptoms (e.g., anxiety and depression symptoms) than proactive aggression. Detained youth are more likely to utilize both reactive and proactive functions of aggression as well as are at greater risk for developing internalizing sympt...

Background Alcohol use among adolescents has been linked to a host of negative social adjustment outcomes, including aggression and peer victimization. However, it is not clear if these associations vary among those who use alcohol with parental permission versus without parental permission, which has implications for prevention and intervention ap...

The aim of the current longitudinal study was to examine the interactive effects of six common coping strategies (i.e., adult support seeking, friend support seeking, problem solving, humor, passive coping, and cognitive distancing) and emotion (i.e., anger and sadness) dysregulation on concurrent levels and subsequent trajectories of peer victimiz...

Background Although cyber victimization (CV) occurs in both middle school (MS) and high school (HS)—and these experiences appear to differ between boys and girls—to our knowledge, no studies have directly examined these differences across specific acts of CV. Further, limited research has examined school environment factors, such as school safety a...

Parental psychological control has been linked to aggression, but further research is needed to elucidate specific associations with the functions of aggression. The current study sought to advance the field by examining associations between parental psychological control and reactive and proactive aggression and whether symptoms of anxiety moderat...

The current study examined associations between sibling victimization and anxiety and depression symptoms while also considering peer victimization within time and six months later among elementary school-age youth. Both sibling and peer victimization were associated with depression symptoms within as well as across time when considered independent...

Childhood aggression is associated with many deleterious outcomes and is a common reason for psychiatric referral (Card & Little, 2006; Gurnani et al., 2016). One factor associated with childhood aggression is Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs; Felitti et al., 1998). However, existing research remains equivocal on which characteristics of ACEs (e...

Background There are limited studies examining associations between callous-unemotional (CU) traits and peer victimization, with some research suggesting a positive association between these two constructs and other studies indicating no association. However, no research to date has examined these associations among justice-involved youth, and CU t...

Background: Proactive and reactive functions of aggression have been found to be differentially associated with substance use; however, the pattern of associations differs across substance and outcome assessed. Methods: The current study extends extant literature by examining associations between proactive and reactive functions of aggression and f...

Background Youth involved with the juvenile justice system are at an increased risk for developing internalizing symptoms. In accordance with ecological systems theory and Self‐Determination Theory, parental psychological control and emotion-related constructs, such as alexithymia (or difficulty processing emotions), are linked to internalizing sym...

This study examined whether behavioral dysregulation moderated associations between individual contextual factors (i.e. psychological control, peer delinquency, peer victimization, and negative life events) and the past 30-day frequency of specific substance use (i.e. tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, e-cigarettes, and prescription drugs) in a sample of...

Critical consciousness (CC) has been linked to academic and civic engagement for students from marginalized backgrounds, but little work has examined CC for students from more privileged groups. In addition, research indicates that school characteristics may promote the development of CC, but this literature has yet to be fully developed. Specifica...

The current study examined associations between proactive and reactive aggression and disciplinary actions in an academic year among middle school‐age youth at Time 1 (Fall) and 6‐month later (Spring) and evaluated school attachment as a moderator of these links. Findings indicated that reactive, not proactive, aggression was robustly positively as...

Although limited, previous research has demonstrated that informants differ on their reports of childhood aggression subtypes (i.e., proactive and reactive). Further research is needed to understand how discrepancies between reporters may be moderated by other variables and how these associations may change over time. This study examined discrepanc...

Research on sibling aggression remains limited despite growing evidence that aggression towards siblings is associated with negative adjustment outcomes. The current study advances the field by examining proactive and reactive aggression toward siblings in middle childhood. Specifically, this study utilized youth self-reports to 1) evaluate the 6-m...

Perceived containment is the belief that one can be controlled by the limits set by authority figures, with low levels of perceived containment indicating that one does not believe they can be controlled by others. Low levels of perceived containment have been associated with a range of problem behaviors in youth, including proactive and reactive a...

The assessment of internalizing symptoms among incarcerated juveniles is limited. Untreated internalizing symptoms can lead to both problems within the facility as well as a higher likelihood of recidivism. However, more research is needed to understand how specific types of symptoms experienced (i.e., depressive vs. anxiety symptoms) are associate...

Given the significant negative impacts of peer victimization on youth development, studies have sought to understand what buffers against these consequences. To that end, the present study examined whether teacher attachment and perceptions of school safety moderated the associations between different forms of victimization and school absences over...

This study used an accelerated longitudinal design to investigate trajectories of proactive and reactive aggression in middle childhood and their outcomes in early adolescence. Children (N = 1420; ages 5-12; 48% female) were assessed biannually over 6 school years. Classroom teachers rated students' proactive and reactive aggression throughout grad...

Emotional/behavioral concerns are common among children with ADHD. Familial factors (e.g., parental adjustment, parenting behaviors) are linked to the presence of comorbid internalizing/externalizing symptoms among children with ADHD. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate a model that includes multiple familial variables and their direct...

Peer victimization, or the experience of being the recipient of aggressive behavior intended to oppress, humiliate, or dominate others, is a concern due to the negative outcomes that often result for those involved. These interactions involve not only the victim and the aggressor, but also bystanders who witness these acts. The chapter authors brie...

Perceived containment, the belief that authorities can effectively set limits on behavior, may explain why behavioral interventions produce moderate effects in youth exhibiting callous-unemotional traits. Examining whether callous-unemotional traits and perceived containment work together to confer risk for antisocial behaviors has implications for...

Sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) appears to be distinct from attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and unique patterns of association between SCT and comorbid symptoms have been reported in the literature. The current study examined the relation between environmental supports and comorbid concerns among children with high SCT. Parents of ch...

Background Extant literature suggests that associations between aggression and substance use differ based on proactive and reactive functions of aggression and the specific substance use outcomes examined. To date, no research has examined links between these functions of aggression and e-cigarette use specifically, which could aid in developing pr...

Despite the large societal and personal cost associated with the detainment of juvenile offenders in residential facilities, little is known about the factors that contribute to youth behavior while incarcerated. One factor that may be of importance to maintaining security within facilities and improving rehabilitation efforts is youth’s perception...

There is evidence to suggest differential associations between perceived containment (one’s belief about the influence of adult authority on behavior) and proactive and reactive functions of aggression; however, the findings have been inconsistent, and additional consideration of potential moderating variables is needed. The current study further e...

The current study examined whether associations between functions of aggression (proactive and reactive) and peer victimization (physical and relational) were moderated by parental psychological control in a sample of elementary school-aged children. Analyses were based on a sample of 279 children in grades three through five. Data was collected in...

Background: Although research on adolescent e-cigarette use is growing, several questions remain unanswered, including the timing of initiation and the co-occurrence with initiation of other substances. The current study longitudinally evaluated the risk for initiation of e-cigarettes and examined associations with this risk and initiation of other...

Objective: Substance use peaks in emerging adulthood, with evidence suggesting that college-attending emerging adults have a higher rate of substance use than their non-college attending peers. More insight into the factors that might contribute to substance use among college-attending emerging adults is needed. The current study examined the moder...

Background Severe irritability has become an important topic in child and adolescent mental health. Based on the available evidence and on public health considerations, WHO classified chronic irritability within oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) in ICD‐11, a solution markedly different from DSM‐5’s (i.e. the new childhood mood diagnosis, disrupti...

Preliminary evidence indicates that affective empathy is differentially related to proactive and reactive functions of aggression. However, additional longitudinal research is needed to understand the potential reciprocal nature of these links. The current study examined the bidirectional associations between affective empathy and proactive and rea...

Objective: Peer victimization has been shown to be a robust predictor of depressive and anxiety symptoms over time. Relatively little is known, however, regarding what protective factors may attenuate these associations and render youth more resilient to this interpersonal stressor. Therefore, the current study examined sadness and worry regulation...

There is preliminary research indicating that perceived containment, or one’s perception that adults can control one’s behavior, is associated with aggression and other problem behavior. However, more research is needed to understand the construct of perceived containment. To this end, the current study sought to assess the following aims in a samp...

Background: Middle school age youth are increasing their use of e-cigarettes, which creates a major public health concern. However, more research examining e-cigarette use in this age group is needed. Methods: The current study examines trends in e-cigarette use, perceptions of parental attitudes regarding e-cigarettes, and sibling use over a three...

The current study examines associations between reactive and proactive aggression and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among youth (N = 115, 62% male), ranging from 6 to 12 years, seeking services in an outpatient psychological clinic. Symptoms of hyperactivity/impulsivity and inattention were evaluated as potential moderators of this link. Children...

Polysubstance use (PSU) is highly prevalent among college students. Recent evidence indicates that PSU is based on gene x environment (G×E) interactions, yet the specific biosocial factors underlying this problem remain elusive. We recently reported that lifetime use of tobacco and cannabis in college students is influenced by the interaction of th...

There is growing evidence indicating that a lack of perceived containment, or youth's beliefs about whether adults can control their behavior, is associated with problem behavior. However, little research has examined factors that may contribute to perceived containment, which would be helpful in further tailoring prevention and intervention effort...

Background Although there are concerns regarding the use of restrictive housing with detained youth, little research has examined factors that contribute to youth risk for restrictive housing. Objective The current study examined whether perceived containment and contextual factors (i.e., peer delinquency, neighborhood problems, stressful life eve...

Extant research indicates that peer victimization is an important factor in the development of internalizing symptoms for youth. However, few studies have examined contextual factors that may impact how peer victimization contributes to these symptoms in middle childhood, especially in the form of victimization. The current study evaluated associat...

This study examined associations between body habitus and functions of aggression, in a sample of 474 college students from the Midwestern region of the United States (age range = 18-25y; 73% Caucasian). Two instruments of aggression, the Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire from Dodge & Coie (DC) and Raine et al. (RPQ) were given as self-as...

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether dating violence victimization (psychological, physical, and sexual) and substance use (alcohol and marijuana) predicted sexual behaviors that increase risk for poor outcomes from ages 15-19. Adolescents (N = 1042; 56% female) were recruited from high schools in Southeast Texas in 2010 and fo...

A sample of 129 (73% male) youth admitted consecutively into a juvenile detention center were used to examine individual characteristics that contribute the implementation of a behavioral intervention within a juvenile detention center. Given that a system of rewards and punishments is considered the mechanism of change within many behavioral inter...

The goal of this article is to investigate the symptom dimensions of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD; irritability, defiance) and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; inattention, hyperactivity-impulsivity) as predictors of academic performance, depressive symptoms, and peer functioning in middle childhood. Children (N = 346; 51% fema...

Background There is limited research examining outcomes associated with cyber victimization among middle school age youth, which is a time of increased online usage and risk for problem behaviors. Objective The current study evaluated associations between cyber victimization, lifetime substance use, and anxiety and depression symptoms over an acad...

The purpose of the present study is to examine whether physical and relational victimization negatively impacts indicators of school climate–students’ perceptions of school safety, their attachment to school, and their help‐seeking behavior–and whether gender moderates these associations. Using a sample of 361 third through fifth‐grade students rec...

Further research is needed to understand factors contributing to reactive and proactive functions of aggression in order to develop more targeted prevention and intervention strategies. Perceived containment, or one’s perception that authority figures have the ability to set limits on their behavior, has been linked to aggression. However, it is no...

Severe irritability is a common and clinically important problem longitudinally associated with internalizing and externalizing problems in children. To better understand these mechanisms and to inform treatment research, we tested cognitive-behavioral processes as candidate mediators in the paths from irritability to later problems. Methods: A sch...

Peer victimization is strongly associated with depression and anxiety symptoms; however, not all victimized youth experience these internalizing symptoms. Accordingly, factors that contribute to these associations need to be examined. The current study examined the potential moderating role of sleep in the associations between peer victimization an...

Objective Understanding factors that impact child adjustment is imperative. Parental adjustment, parenting behaviors, and environmental factors (e.g., child routines) have been linked to child behavior. In clinical child populations, these factors are particularly important given the increased demands the child’s disorder often places on caregivers...

Intimate-partner violence (IPV) in adolescent and young-adult dating relationships is a prevalent and serious public health problem. The measurement of IPV across adolescence has most commonly relied on the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationship Inventory (CADRI; Wolfe et al., 2001), which postulates 5 distinct yet related types of IPV (i.e., t...

Although most states across the United States have enacted anti-bullying legislation, state laws vary greatly in detail and direction, leaving many school districts wondering how to best address the problem of bullying and comply with their state’s legislative requirements. In response, a comprehensive, statewide training initiative was conducted f...

Siblings’ influence on youth aggressive behavior has been found in previous studies, but further research is needed in order to better understand both the shared relations between siblings’ levels of proactive and reactive subtypes of aggression as well as the factors contributing to this relationship, such as parent behavior. The current study ext...

The middle school transition has been identified as a difficult time for youths, resulting in adjustment difficulties across a variety of domains. Although some research has examined strategies that are useful for the adjustment outcomes associated with the transition, more research understanding student perceptions of what is helpful in the middle...

Objective: Due to the limited effectiveness of extant prevention and intervention strategies, the current study is an initial evaluation of a cognitive behavioral group intervention, originally designed to treat symptoms of depression and anxiety, for youth who experienced peer victimization. Methods: Twelve third‐ through fifth‐grade youth partic...

A large literature documents that posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms are associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration among adults. However, research on this relationship among adolescents and young adults has been plagued by methodological flaws (e.g., cross-sectional designs). Thus, the purpose of the present study was...

Evidence supports the distinctions between forms (relational vs. physical) and functions (proactive vs. reactive) of aggression; however, little research has investigated these two subtype frameworks simultaneously or by teacher-report in early childhood. We examined the factor structures, interrelations, and longitudinal associations of teacher-re...

Studies examining the link between psychological control and peer victimization are limited. The current study extends knowledge of the role of parental psychological control in predicting children's experiences of peer victimization by longitudinally evaluating the moderating role of emotion inhibition. Gender differences in this effect were also...

Background Postsecondary students in Western countries exhibit a high prevalence of cannabis and tobacco use disorders. The etiology of these problems is contributed by several psychosocial factors, including childhood adversity and trauma; however, the mechanisms whereby these environmental determinants predispose to the use of these substances re...

Background The current literature examining how community violence exposure (CVE) differentially relates to oppositional behaviors and conduct problems, as well as factors that impact this link, is limited. Further research is needed to examine these relationships to understand the etiologies of these disorders and what factors can buffer the effec...

Objective: Beliefs about the acceptability of intimate partner violence (IPV) are associated with the perpetration of IPV among adolescents. However, minimal research has examined whether this association persists across time or whether there is a bidirectional association between acceptability of IPV and the perpetration of IPV. The purpose of th...

The current study examined individual characteristics as potential risk factors associated with increased levels of restrictive housing among detained youth. Data was analyzed from 129 youth who completed measures in a survey format upon their arrival to the facility. Data also included facility records regarding the rates of Tier 2 (e.g., day room...