Secuencias temporales de comportamiento desadaptativo en niños agresivos: análisis de T-Patterns en tareas estructuradas

Assessing childhood behavioral problems faces limitations associated with early child development. In this context, the systematic observation of dyadic interactions optimizes the collection of reliable data. This study examined differences in maladaptive behavior patterns between two groups of children (high and low aggression scores) during a structured task and a free-play situation. Participants were 10 girls and 12 boys (ages 41–73 months, M = 61.50, SD = 9.11) interacting with their mothers. Results showed that aggressive children displayed more maladaptive behaviors, particularly during the structured task, where the observed patterns consisted of annoyance, disobedience, negative physical contact, and complaints. In the free-play situation, fewer patterns of annoyance were observed, and there was an absence of negative physical contact. These findings suggest that structured tasks, which require adherence to rules and achievement of specific goals, are more effective in revealing problematic behaviors in aggressive children.