Parent-Child Relationship Developmental Characteristics and Delinquency Among Youth with Victim-Offender Overlap in School Violence: A Systematic Review

This study examined the developmental characteristics of the victim-offender overlap in school violence among upper-grade elementary students (Grades 4-6) in South Korea and explored the mediating and protective roles of parent-child relationship factors in the transition from overlap to delinquency. A Systematic Literature Review (SLR) was conducted using 22 peer-reviewed Korean journal articles, which were analyzed according to research design, sample characteristics, key variables, methods of measuring overlap, and outcomes related to delinquency and problem behaviors. The findings revealed that late elementary school is a critical developmental transition period in which victim-offender overlap becomes salient and begins to shift toward delinquent pathways. Parent-child relationship factors, including attachment, parenting practices, parental monitoring, emotional support, and family conflict, functioned simultaneously as both risk and protective factors for overlap and delinquency. Moreover, the victim-offender overlap was interpreted as a developmental precursor of early-onset delinquent trajectories. These results suggest that school violence prevention policies should move beyond post hoc interventions toward a developmentally grounded early prevention framework centered on late elementary school, and highlight the need for integrated prevention systems incorporating early screening, family-linked intervention, emotion regulation training, and community-based support, along with onset-based specialized intervention tracks.