ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN LOW SELF-CONTROL AND AGGRESSION AMONG MALAYSIAN MALE PRISONERS

A large body of criminological research provides evidence for the role of low self-control in triggering aggressive and violent behaviour. there are actually limited cross-sectional studies in asean countries that ascertain the relationships between these two constructs. the present study aimed to determine the associations between low self-control and aggression among malaysian male prisoners. methods: a cross-sectional study was conducted in two prisons located within peninsular malaysia. a total of 198 malaysian male prisoners were recruited into this study. a guided self-administered questionnaire consisting of two psychometric instruments adapted to the malaysian context was used, ie. malay versions of the self control scale (scsm) and buss perry aggression questionnaire (bpaq-m). the pearson correlation coefficient test was employed to determine the association between low self-control and aggression. in addition, correlation was also examined between low self-control and subscales of aggression. results: in general, findings demonstrated a positive and significant association between low selfcontrol and aggression (r = 0.52, p > 0.001). specifically, low self-control was significantly associated with anger (r = 0.54, p < 0.001), physical aggression (r = 0.50, p < 0.001), and hostility (r = 0.33, p < 0.001). no significant correlation was observed between low self-control and verbal aggression (r = 0.13, p > 0.05). conclusion: the implications from this study include the importance of selfcontrol as a salient predictor of aggression and community intervention among at-risk groups. the directions for future research are also discussed