ABSTRACT
A large body of research implicates families in the development and prevention of aggressive and violent behavior. This research is consistent with broader theoretical perspectives emphasizing family as a critical context of child development. Developmental systems theory sees individual development as the product of many interactions across system levels, including inter-personal as well as intrapersonal (i.e., biological, cognitive, affective) processes. Developmental processes extend beyond the individual to include interactions with social systems, including the local community, peer group, and perhaps most proximally, the family (Gottlieb, 2007; Masten, 2014).
