ABSTRACT
Attempts to understand and explain how human behavior may change across the life span have increased in popularity throughout a variety of academic disciplines, including programs of research in psychology, sociology, human development, and communication (see Bigner, 1994; Knapp, 1978; Mosher, Youngman, & Day, 1999; Pecchioni, Wright, & Nussbaum, 2005; Smith, 1996; Stevenson, 1994). Life span scholars (including communication researchers), using life span theories, methodologies, and research findings generated from several disciplines, have focused on such topics as changes in language, cognition, communication skills, relationships, and many other communicationrelated phenomena that are typically addressed in the communication discipline (Pecchioni, Wright, & Nussbaum, 2005; Williams & Nussbaum, 2001). However, relatively few communication studies have focused on aggressive behaviors from a life span perspective despite the prevalence and persistence of aggressive communication throughout life.
