A
Longitudinal Study of Gender Differences in Prosocial and Antisocial
Behavior
H. K. Ma, D. T. L. Shek, & K. K. Tam |
The
gender differences in the development of prosocial and antisocial
behavior of 164 Hong Kong Chinese adolescents were investigated over
a two-year period. There were no significant differences between
boys and girls, both concurrently and longitudinally, in prosocial
behavior. However, boys were significantly more antisocial than girls
at Grade 7, and the frequency of antisocial behavior showed little
change from Grade 7 to Grade 9 in boys. On the other hand, girls
demonstrated a significant increase in the frequency of antisocial
behavior from Grade 7 to Grade 9. Finally, there were no significant
gender differences in antisocial behavior at Grade 9. The gender
difference in the development of antisocial behavior was explained
in terms of puberty and child rearing pattern. Key words: gender difference, prosocial behavior, antisocial behavior |