Abstract
The construct of covert antisocial behavior (CAB) was investigated. Expert judges rated a subset of behaviors from the Child Behavior Checklist-parent Form and Teacher Report Form of the Child Behavior Checklist (Achenbach, 1991) in terms of their frequency of covertness and antisociality. Those behaviors that were judged to be frequently antisocial and covert were used as a measure of covert antisocial behavior in this study. Three relations were predicted: (1) I predicted a positive correlation between CAB and relational aggression (RA). (2) I predicted that children who exhibit both relational aggression and overt aggression evince greater levels of CAB than children who use only relational aggression or only overt aggression. (3) I predicted that CAB will predict children's social preference scores above and beyond parent and teacher ratings of overt aggressive behavior. Results demonstrated no correlation between RA and teacher- and parent-rated covert antisocial behavior. Additionally, there was no main effect of type of aggression, and thus no moderating effect of gender on children's parent- and teacher-rated covert antisocial behavior. However, parent-rated CAB significantly predicted children's social preference scores.
Loss, Ryan Michael (2000). Exploring the construct of covert antisocial behavior. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -2000 -THESIS -L67.