Evidence for an aggressive (and delinquent) personality
- 1 March 1987
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Wiley in British Journal of Social Psychology
- Vol. 26 (1) , 87-89
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8309.1987.tb00765.x
Abstract
An aggressive (and delinquent) personality can be shown to exist when observations are made across a large enough sampling of exemplars. Arguments against the existence of such a personality are based on a failure to use sufficiently aggregated measures. Numerous estimates are preferable in order to average out idiosyncratic variance thereby leaving a clear view of underlying dimensions of behavior. We illustrate the usefulness of this principal and suggest that consistent patterns of individual and group differences in aggregation are to be found, are associated with delinquent behavior, and are moderately heritable.This publication has 4 references indexed in Scilit:
- The validity of formal and informal personality assessmentsJournal of Research in Personality, 1985
- Predicting our own aggression: Person, subculture or situation?British Journal of Social Psychology, 1985
- Stability of aggression over time and generations.Developmental Psychology, 1984
- Genetic Influences in Criminal Convictions: Evidence from an Adoption CohortScience, 1984