Pro-social and aggressive behaviors among school children: The role of callous-unemotional traits

Different kinds of behavior and traits may gradually manifest during the childhood; among such behaviors are pro-social and aggressive behaviors. The present study examined two developmental traits (callous-unemotional) and their role in the relationship between pro-social and aggressive behavior. Participants are school pupils in Nkpor; a South Eastern town in the Anambra State of Nigeria. All the participants were of the Igbo ethnic group. They include 65 primary school pupils comprising of 30 primary six pupils ( M age = 10.50, SD = 1.07) and 35 primary two pupils ( M age = 6.02, SD =.66). Data for pro-social, aggressive behavior and callous-unemotional traits (CU) were gathered from the teacher’s report. Results revealed that CU traits were negatively correlated with pro-social but positively correlated with aggression. Pro-social behavior was also negatively correlated with aggressive behavior. Hierarchical regression showed that pro-social behavior was not a significant predictor of aggressive behavior when CU traits were not controlled, while CU traits predict aggressive behavior with or without pro-sociality. The discussion focused on callous and uncaring traits as an important mediating mechanism that could help researchers understand early developmental trajectories of pro-social behaviors.