TY - JOUR T1 - Commentary: Predicting Aggression in Youth JF - Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online JO - J Am Acad Psychiatry Law SP - 180 LP - 182 VL - 39 IS - 2 AU - Peter Ash AU - Julie Alonso-Katzowitz Y1 - 2011/04/01 UR - http://jaapl.org/content/39/2/180.abstract N2 - Aggression in youth is common and encompasses a wide range of behaviors that vary along such dimensions as direction (toward self or others), degree of action (ideation, verbal threats, or actual assaults), degree of planning (reactive or impulsive, planned or predatory), system level (biological, psychological, or social), and seriousness of intent. Risk factors vary, depending on the range of behavior being predicted and the developmental level of the youth being assessed. The Brief Rating of Aggression by Children and Adolescents (BRACHA) shows promise for assessing the general risk of aggressiveness in a developmentally diverse child and adolescent inpatient population. Further research may show whether patterns of risk factors also have treatment and prognostic implications that will aid in working with this population. ER -