Here, we expand on the current literature in two important ways: by considering an operational definition of maltreatment that has not been previously used in the context of the reported gene-environment interaction, thereby extending our understanding of potential environmental risk, and by testing for effects across a broader developmental time period than in past work. We investigate the behavioral effect of variation in levels of physical discipline, in addition to extremes of maltreatment. Furthermore, we incorporate multiple reports of externalizing behavior, which is normative at some levels, as it is reported by parents, teachers, and selves, and manifests in early childhood (age 6) through early adulthood (age 22). Much of the previously published research has relied on retrospective reports of behavior and/or has limited the behavioral outcome of interest to pathologically aggressive or antisocial behavior in adults. We report findings from a prospective, longitudinal, community sample of 250 Caucasian males who are part of the Child Development Project (Dodge, Bates, & Pettit, 1990). The effects of childhood maltreatment on behavior have been reported previously for this sample. Dodge, Bates, and
