title: Aggressive and Violent Behavior and Emotional Self-Efficacy: Is There a Relationship for Adolescents?
abstract: In this cross-sectional study we explored relationships between aggressive and violent behaviors and emotional self-efficacy (ESE) in a statewide sample of public high school adolescents in South Carolina (N = 3836).
  
  
  
  The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey items on aggressive and violent behavior items and an adolescent ESE scale were used. Logistic regression analyses and multivariate models constructed separately, revealed significant race by sex findings.
  
  
  
  Results suggest that carrying a weapon to school (past 30 days) and being threatened or injured with a gun, knife, or club at school (past 12 months) were significantly associated (p < .05) with reduced ESE for specific race/sex groups.
  
  
  
  Results have implications for school- and community-based mental health services and social and emotional learning and aggression/violence prevention programs for adolescents. Measures of ESE as a component of comprehensive assessments of adolescent mental health, social and emotional learning and aggressive/violent behaviors in fieldwork, research, and program-evaluation efforts should be considered.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Promotion, Education & Behavior, Arnold School of Public Health, Department of Family & Preventive Medicine, School or Medicine, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208.
authors.forename: Robert F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Valois
authors.affiliation: Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences, School of Public Health, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506.
authors.forename: Keith J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Zullig
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Promotion, Education & Behavior, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208.
authors.forename: Asa A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Revels
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration; D012572:School Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012737:Sex Factors; D013022:South Carolina / Q000453:epidemiology; D014754:Violence / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D054041:Weapons; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
keywords: adolescent health; emotional self-efficacy; mental health; violence and aggression; weapon-carrying