Aggression in childhood can portend serious problems later in life: dropping out of school, early sexual activity and teenage motherhood. That is why a lot of research has been done into it. Various causes of aggression are mentioned. However, one that has not been discussed much, but still seems to have an influence, is ‘playing around’. This style of play is an important style of play for boys. Playing around is hardly done by girls. Because playing involves physical contact between boys, this could be a cause of the difference in aggression between boys and girls. Boys use more physical aggression, while girls use more indirect aggression.
The difference between aggression and roughhousing
First of all, aggression and frolicking are often confused. However, they are two different things. Aggression is difficult to define. There are more than 200 different definitions of aggression, but researchers agree that the definition should include two important points: the aggressive behavior must be intended to harm another person and the victim must realize that he or she has been hurt . Playing around, on the other hand, has no intention of hurting anyone else. In general, there is laughter when there is a fight. When the romping is over, the children often stay together and play another game. In the case of aggression, the children are usually separated, and at that point the children can no longer play together. So there is a clear difference between aggressive behavior and roughhousing.
In general, there is play with friends and there is no harm involved. Playing around is most common when boys are 5 to 7 years old. However, in some cases, romping can lead to aggression. Children who are rejected by peers in particular can become aggressive from playing around. These children are less accurate in distinguishing between aggression and playfulness. There are three reasons why children’s frolicking can turn into aggression. The first reason is that an honest mistake is made. A child accidentally hits too hard, causing the other to become angry. Aggressive behavior can also occur when new social groups are formed. The aggressive behavior is used to gain a higher dominant status. Once the social groups are formed, this aggression will disappear. As a final reason, playing around can turn into aggressive behavior because some children cannot control themselves well and are overly emotional.
The relationship between aggression and play
Researchers have also found indirect evidence that romping and aggression are related. This is because both romping and aggression are used to gain dominant status. The idea that romping and aggression go together was first measured by Neill. Neill stated that when a weaker boy shows that he is in need, a fight will take on more of a play form. If this is not shown, the stronger boy will increase the intensity of the fight until the weaker boy shows that he is in need. This was supported by Humphreys and Smith. The age at which frolicking and aggression are most closely related is 11 years. After this age, playing around hardly leads to aggression anymore.
A traditional view of horseplay is that its function is to teach combat skills. Being able to fight can influence aggression. When boys are aggressive, they usually start fighting, unlike girls. It could be that this is still left over from the past. Back then, men mainly had to fight and hunt, and women did not. However, too little research has been done into this to come to a good conclusion. There is also little and no direct evidence that romping can be linked to combat skills.
Conclusion
In general, too little research has been done to reach good conclusions. Although there is some evidence that play and aggression are related, clear evidence is generally lacking. What is clear is that rejected children in particular find it difficult to distinguish between frolicking and aggression. Dominance also plays an important role. This is important evidence, because it allows solutions to be found on how to prevent aggression.