In this study using data from a large cohort of individuals that were first assessed at age 8 and re-sampled at ages 19, 30, and 48, we addressed two issues. First, we examined the continuity of aggression from middle childhood (age 8) through middle adulthood (age 48) in order to assess the extent to which stability or change at the extreme ends of the aggression continuum accounts for continuity. We observed a moderate degree of continuity in aggressive behavior over time with somewhat higher continuity for males. In contrast to earlier assertions by others that continuity in aggression is mostly driven by highly aggressive individuals staying in that position over time, we found that continuity was just as much the result of low aggressives remaining low as high aggressives remaining high.
