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. 2023 Sep 12;11(1):272.
doi: 10.1186/s40359-023-01272-6.

The effect of relative deprivation on aggressive behavior of college students: a moderated mediation model of belief in a just world and moral disengagement

Mengyao Wang  1 , Ming Chen  2 , Zhiyan Chen  3
Affiliations

The effect of relative deprivation on aggressive behavior of college students: a moderated mediation model of belief in a just world and moral disengagement

Mengyao Wang et al. BMC Psychol. .

Abstract

Background: Previous research found that college students have exhibited a group of concern, and aggressive behavior occurs from time to time in daily life. In order to investigate the effect of relative deprivation on aggressive behavior of college students, this study conducted a moderated mediation model to examine the relationship between relative deprivation, aggressive behavior, belief in a just world, and moral disengagement.

Methods: 1169 college students(71.7% female; mean age = 19.41, SD = 1.3, range = 17-30years) participated in and completed measures of Relative Deprivation Questionnaire, Belief in a Just World Scale, Moral disengagement Scale and Aggression Questionnaire. The data were analyzed by using a moderated mediation model with SPSS and Process 3.1 macro.

Results: The results revealed that: (1) Relative deprivation significantly positively predicted college students' aggressive behavior controlling for gender, grade, and age (B = 0.45, p＜0.001). (2) Belief in a just world played mediating role in relative deprivation and aggressive behavior(indirect effect = 0.04, 95%CI = [0.002,0.007], accounting for 9% of the total effect). (3) The moderated mediator model test showed that moral disengagement regulates the first half of the mediator effect path (B = 0.71, p < 0.01).

Conclusion: The present study analyzed the moral disengagement mechanisms deeply and shed light on how to decrease the aggressive behavior of college students.

Keywords: Aggressive behavior; Belief in a just world; College students; Moral disengagement; Relative deprivation.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
A model of the relationship between relative deprivation, belief in a just world, aggressive behavior and moral disengagement
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The summary figure for model 7 in this study
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
The interaction between moral disengagement and relative deprivation on belief in a just world
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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