Hostility and social distrust as predictors of deviant affiliation in adolescents

Context and relevance. According to the Prosecutor General's Office, juvenile crime in Russia increased by 10% between January and November 2025, reaching 25,900 cases. More than half of these teenagers committed crimes as part of groups. During the same period, 89,600 children in our country became victims of crime. According to the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, 2,000 children suffered from domestic violence in 2024. However, it was noted that domestic violence is a latent phenomenon—children experiencing violence do not seek help, and the actual situation is many times higher than the reported crime statistics. Objective. To identify and analyze specific intrapersonal and intrafamily psychological characteristics of adolescents associated with the risk of developing deviant behavior and affiliation with destructive groups. Hypothesis. The link between negative intra-family relationships and the risk of deviant affiliation in minors is mediated by high levels of hostility and distrust towards the social environment. Methods and materials. The study involved 142 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years (M = 15.12, 56% boys, 44% girls), students in grades 5—11 of schools and gymnasiums in Ufa. A range of methods was used: the Buss—Durkee Hostility Inventory (A. Buss, A. Durkee) was used to assess aggression and hostility; projective techniques such as "Unfinished Sentences" (J. Sachs, S. Levy; modified by V. Mikhal) and " Unfinished Sentences, The Child's Attitude to Violence" (J. Sachs, S. Levy; modified by E.N. Volkova) were used to study the underlying attitudes of adolescents to their immediate environment; and the "Antivitality and Resilience" questionnaire (O.A. Sagalakova, D.V. Truevtsev) was used to analyze negative experiences and assess the family climate, as well as the tendency to antisocial behavior. Results. A statistically significant phenomenon of frustrated aggression was identified, in which high levels of hostility are combined with reduced overall aggression. A sharp contrast was found in emotional attitudes toward parents: a positive attitude toward the mother, compared to an extremely negative perception of the father. Thirty-seven percent of respondents experienced abuse, 17% experienced emotional violence in the family, and 48% of minors lack trust in society due to fear of betrayal. The dominant coping strategy is forced independence, characteristic of 63% of respondents. A model of the relationship between family dysfunction and the risk of deviant affiliation in minors was empirically tested. Correlation and regression analysis revealed that hostility and mistrust of the social environment (measured as a combination of loneliness and mistrust) are direct predictors of a tendency toward antisocial behavior and susceptibility to deviant groups. The influence of factors such as negative attitudes towards the father and the experience of abuse on the tendency to deviance is mediated by the formation of these psychological characteristics in adolescents. Conclusions. A psychological risk syndrome, including mistrust of society and latent hostility associated with dysfunctional parent-child relationships, forms a complex of characteristics in adolescents that contribute to the development of a psychological profile sensitive to deviant affiliation.

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