Early classroom behaviors and later misconduct.

A longitudinal study examined the relationship between teacher-rated behaviors (the Devereux Elementary School Behavior Rating Scale) in kindergarten through Grade 3 and delinquency and school misconduct throughout adolescence. 659 children who were at risk because of their urban minority living conditions were initially assessed in 1968, and 380 were successfully followed up in 1982. An early high-risk pattern was identified in both sexes that indicated that Ss who were overly and disruptively involved socially and who failed to modulate their own behavior to accommodate others were likely to come into conflict with authority quite early in life and into adolescence. Results are discussed in relationship to other research on temperament, parent–child interaction, and possible preventive intervention. (47 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)