Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Community Violence Exposure and Generalized Anxiety Symptoms: Do Callous-Unemotional Behaviors Moderate this Relation Among Urban Youth?

  • Published:
Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Community violence exposure (CVE; i.e., direct victimization and witnessed violence) is a major public health concern among youth who reside in low income, urban neighborhoods, who tend to experience CVE chronically and disproportionately. Frequent CVE is associated with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) symptoms, such as persistent or excessive worry and difficulty concentrating. However, not all youth experiencing CVE exhibit such symptoms. One understudied factor that may moderate this relation is callous-unemotional (CU) behaviors (e.g., behaviors consistent with lack of guilt, low levels of empathy). CU behaviors are associated with lower levels of responsiveness to contextual processes; as such, CU behaviors may be associated with lower levels of GAD symptoms in the context of CVE. However, little research considers CU behaviors and GAD symptoms concurrently. To address this gap, the present study examined associations among witnessed and direct CVE, CU behaviors, and GAD symptoms among low-income, urban youth (N = 104, 50% male, Mage = 9.93 ± 1.22 years old, 95% African-American/Black). Multiple regression analyses indicated teacher-reported CU behaviors moderated the relations between CVE and caregiver-reported GAD symptoms. Post-hoc probing revealed that among youth with higher levels of CVE, higher levels of CU behaviors were associated with elevated GAD symptoms compared to their peers with lower levels of CU behaviors. Youth with lower levels of CU behaviors evidenced moderate levels of GAD symptoms regardless of their levels of CVE. Thus, low-income, urban youth who experience elevated levels of CVE may be at increased risk for co-occurring GAD and CU symptoms.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

Available upon request.

Code Availability

Available upon request.

References

  • Aiken, L. S., & West, S. G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Sage

  • American Psychiatric Association (2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders–Fourth Edition-Text Revision. (4th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890423349

  • Anastassiou-Hadjicharalambous, X., & Warden, D. (2008). Physiologically-indexed and self-perceived affective empathy in conduct-disordered children high and low on callous-unemotional traits. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 39(4), 503–517. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-008-0104-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Armsworth, M. W., & Holaday, M. (1993). The effects of psychological trauma on children and adolescents. Journal of Counseling and Development, 72(1), 49–56. http://10.0.3.234/j.1556-6676.1993.tb02276.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bacchini, D., Miranda, M. C., & Affuso, G. (2011). Effects of parental monitoring and exposure to community violence on antisocial behavior and anxiety/depression among adolescents. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 26(2), 269–292. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260510362879

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blair, R. J. (1997). Moral reasoning and the child with psychopathic tendencies. Personality and Individual Differences, 22(5), 731–739. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(96)00249-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blair, R. J. (2015). Psychopathic traits from an RDoC perspective. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 30, 79–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conb.2014.09.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blair, R. J., Monson, J., & Frederickson, N. (2001). Moral reasoning and conduct problems in children with emotional and behavioural difficulties. Personality and Individual Differences, 31(5), 799–811. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(00)00181-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bringewatt, E. H., & Gershoff, E. T. (2010). Falling through the cracks: Gaps and barriers in the mental health system for America’s disadvantaged children. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(10), 1291–1299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.04.021

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buka, S. L., Stichick, T. L., Birdthistle, I., & Earls, F. J. (2001). Youth exposure to violence: Prevalence, risks, and consequences. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 71(3), 298–310. https://doi.org/10.1037/0002-9432.71.3.298

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buttelmann, F., & Karbach, J. (2017). Development and plasticity of cognitive flexibility in early and middle childhood. Frontiers in Psychology, 8(6), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01040

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cecil, C. A. M., McCrory, E. J., Barker, E. D., Guiney, J., & Viding, E. (2018). Characterising youth with callous-unemotional traits and concurrent anxiety: evidence for a high-risk clinical group. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 27(7), 885–898. http://10.0.3.239/s00787-017-1086-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chabrol, H., van Leeuwen, N., Rodgers, R. F., & Gibbs, J. C. (2011). Relations between self-serving cognitive distortions, psychopathic traits, and antisocial behavior in a non-clinical sample of adolescents. Personality and Individual Differences, 51(8), 887–892. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2011.07.008

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chow, C. M., Ruhl, H., & Buhrmester, D. (2013). The mediating role of interpersonal competence between adolescents’ empathy and friendship quality: A dyadic approach. Journal of Adolescence, 36(1), 191–200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2012.10.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum

    Google Scholar 

  • Cooley, J. L., Ritschel, L. A., Frazer, A. L., & Blossom, J. B. (2019). The influence of internalizing symptoms and emotion dysregulation on the association between witnessed community violence and aggression among urban adolescents. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 50(6), 883–893. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-019-00890-9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Copeland, V. C., & Snyder, K. (2011). Barriers to mental health treatment services for low-income African American women whose children receive behavioral health services: An ethnographic investigation. Social Work in Public Health, 26(1), 78–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/10911350903341036

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dadds, M. R., Cauchi, A. J., Wimalaweera, S., Hawes, D. J., & Brennan, J. (2012). Outcomes, moderators, and mediators of empathic-emotion recognition training for complex conduct problems in childhood. Psychiatry Research, 199(3), 201–207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2012.04.033

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dadds, M. R., Hawes, D. J., Frost, A. D. J., Vassallo, S., Bunn, P., Hunter, K., & Merz, S. (2009). Learning to “talk the talk”: The relationship of psychopathic traits to deficits in empathy across childhood. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 50(5), 599–606. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2008.02058.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Los Reyes, A., Augenstein, T. M., Wang, M., Thomas, S. A., Drabick, D. A. G., Burgers, D. E., & Rabinowitz, J. (2015). The validity of the multi-informant approach to assessing child and adolescent mental health. Psychological Bulletin, 141(4), 858–900. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038498

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Wied, M., van Boxtel, A., Matthys, W., & Meeus, W. (2012). Verbal, facial and autonomic responses to empathy-eliciting film clips by disruptive male adolescents with high versus low callous-unemotional traits. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 40(2), 211–223. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-011-9557-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dedousis-Wallace, A., Drysdale, S. A., McAloon, J., & Ollendick, T. H. (2021). Parental and Familial Predictors and Moderators of Parent Management Treatment Programs for Conduct Problems in Youth. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 24(1), 92–119. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-020-00330-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Del Rey, R., Lazuras, L., Casas, J. A., Barkoukis, V., Ortega-Ruiz, R., & Tsorbatzoudis, H. (2016). Does empathy predict (cyber) bullying perpetration, and how do age, gender and nationality affect this relationship? Learning and Individual Differences, 45, 275–281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2015.11.021

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Docherty, M., Boxer, P., Huesmann, L. R., O’Brien, M., & Bushman, B. J. (2016). Exploring Primary and Secondary Variants of Psychopathy in Adolescents in Detention and in the Community. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 45(5), 564–578. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2014.979934

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dolan, M. C., & Fullam, R. S. (2010). Moral/conventional transgression distinction and psychopathy in conduct disordered adolescent offenders. Personality and Individual Differences, 49(8), 995–1000. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.08.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Drabick, D. A. G., Gadow, K. D., & Loney, J. (2007). Source-specific oppositional defiant disorder: Comorbidity and risk factors in referred elementary schoolboys. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 46(1), 92–101. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.chi.0000242245.00174.90

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elsaesser, C. (2018). The longitudinal relations between dimensions of community violence exposure and developmental outcomes among adolescent ethnic minority males. Psychology of Violence, 8(4), 409–417. https://doi.org/10.1037/vio0000140

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Essau, C. A., Sasagawa, S., & Frick, P. J. (2006). Callous-unemotional traits in a community sample of adolescents. Assessment, 13(4), 454–469. https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191106287354

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Farver, J. A. M., Xu, Y., Eppe, S., Fernandez, A., & Schwartz, D. (2005). Community violence, family conflict, and preschoolers socioemotional functioning. Developmental Psychology, 41(1), 160–170. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.41.1.160

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fontaine, N. M. G., Rijsdijk, F. V., McCrory, E. J. P., & Viding, E. (2010). Etiology of Different Developmental Trajectories of Callous-Unemotional Traits. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 49(7), 656–664. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2010.03.014

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ford, J., Chapman, J., Mack, J. M., & Pearson, G. (2006, January). Pathways from traumatic child victimization to delinquency: Implications for juvenile and permanency court proceedings and decisions. Juvenile and Family Court Journal, 57, 13–26. http://10.0.4.87/j.1755-6988.2006.tb00111.x

  • Fowler, P. J., Tompsett, C. J., Braciszewski, J. M., Jacques-Tiura, A. J., & Baltes, B. B. (2009). Community violence: A meta-analysis on the effect of exposure and mental health outcomes of children and adolescents. Development and Psychopathology, 21(1), 227–259. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579409000145

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frick, P. J. (2004). The inventory of callous-unemotional traits. Unpublished Rating Scale

  • Frick, P. J. (2009). Extending the construct of psychopathy to youth: Implications for understanding, diagnosing, and treating antisocial children and adolescents. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 54(12), 803–812. https://doi.org/10.1177/070674370905401203

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frick, P. J., & Dickens, C. (2006). Current perspectives on conduct disorder. Current Psychiatry Reports, 8(1), 59–72. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-006-0082-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frick, P. J., Ray, J. V., Thornton, L. C., & Kahn, R. E. (2014). Can callous-unemotional traits enhance the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of serious conduct problems in children and adolescents? A comprehensive review. Psychological Bulletin, 140(1), 1–57. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0033076

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Frick, P. J., & White, S. F. (2008). Research Review: The importance of callous-unemotional traits for developmental models of aggressive and antisocial behavior. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 49(4), 359–375. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2007.01862.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gadow, K. D., & Sprafkin, J. (2002). Child Symptom Inventory-4 screening and norms manual. Stony Brook. NY: Checkmate Plus

    Google Scholar 

  • Gadow, K. D., & Sprafkin, J. (2005a). Child and adolescent symptom inventory-4R. Stony Brook, NY: Checkmate Plus

    Google Scholar 

  • Gadow, K. D., & Sprafkin, J. (2005b). Youth’s Inventory-4 manual. Stony Brook, NY: Checkmate Plus

    Google Scholar 

  • Gadow, K. D., & Sprafkin, J. (2008). Stony Brook, NY: Checkmate Plus. The Symptom Inventories: An annotated bibliography. http://www.checkmateplus.com

  • Gaston, G. B., Earl, T. R., Nisanci, A., & Glomb, B. (2016). Perception of mental health services among Black Americans. Social Work in Mental Health, 14(6), 676–695. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332985.2015.1137257

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gaylord-Harden, N. K., Cunningham, J. A., & Zelencik, B. (2011). Effects of exposure to community violence on internalizing symptoms: Does desensitization to violence occur in African American youth? Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 39(5), 711–719. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-011-9510-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Graham, J. W. (2009). Missing data analysis: Making it work in the real world. Annual Review of Psychology, 60(1), 549–576. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.58.110405.085530

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamby, S. (2020). Strengths-based approaches to conducting research with low income and other marginalized populations. In K. McLean (Ed.), Cultural methodologies in psychology. New York: Oxford University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Henrich, C. C., Schwab-Stone, M., Fanti, K., Jones, S. M., & Ruchkin, V. (2004). The association of community violence exposure with middle-school achievement: A prospective study. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 25(3), 327–348. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2004.04.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holmbeck, G. N. (2002). Post-hoc probing of significant moderational and mediational effects in studies of pediatric populations. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 27(1), 87–96. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/27.1.87

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howard, D., Feigelman, S., Li, X., Cross, S., & Rachuba, L. (2002). The relationship among violence victimization, witnessing violence, and youth distress. Journal of Adolescent Health, 31(6), 455–462. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1054-139X(02)00404-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jakubovic, R. J., & Drabick, D. A. G. (2020). Community violence exposure and youth aggression: The moderating role of working memory. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 1471–1484. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-020-00683-y

  • Jones, A. P., Laurens, K. R., Herba, C. M., Barker, G. J., & Viding, E. (2009). Amygdala hypoactivity to fearful faces in boys with conduct problems and callous-unemotional traits. American Journal of Psychiatry, 166(1), 95–102. http://10.0.4.152/appi.ajp.2008.07071050

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kahn, R. E., Frick, P. J., Youngstrom, E. A., Youngstrom, K., Feeny, J., N. C., & Findling, R. L. (2013). Distinguishing primary and secondary variants of callous-unemotional traits among adolescents in a clinic-referred sample. Psychological Assessment, 25(3), 966–978. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032880

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karpman, B. (1941). On the need of separating psychopathy into two distinct clinical types: the symptomatic and the idiopathic. Journal of Criminal Psychopathology, 3, 112–137

    Google Scholar 

  • Kemp, E. C., Frick, P. J., Matlasz, T. M., Clark, J. E., Robertson, E. L., Ray, J. V., & Cauffman, E. (2021). Developing cutoff scores for the inventory of callous-unemotional traits (ICU) in justice-involved and community samples. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 00(00), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2021.1955371

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kimonis, E. R., Frick, P. J., Cauffman, E., Goldweber, A., & Skeem, J. (2012). Primary and secondary variants of juvenile psychopathy differ in emotional processing. Development and Psychopathology, 24(3), 1091–1103. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579412000557

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kimonis, E. R., Frick, P. J., Skeem, J. L., Marsee, M. A., Cruise, K., Munoz, L. C., & Morris, A. S. (2008). Assessing callous–unemotional traits in adolescent offenders: Validation of the Inventory of Callous–Unemotional Traits. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 31(3), 241–252. http://10.0.3.248/j.ijlp.2008.04.002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kimonis, E. R., Skeem, J. L., Cauffman, E., & Dmitrieva, J. (2011). Are secondary variants of juvenile psychopathy more reactively violent and less psychosocially mature than primary variants? Law and Human Behavior, 35(5), 381–391. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10979-010-9243-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kumsta, R., Sonuga-Barke, E., & Rutter, M. (2012). Adolescent callous-unemotional traits and conduct disorder in adoptees exposed to severe early deprivation. British Journal of Psychiatry, 200(3), 197–201. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.bp.110.089441

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lang, K. M., & Little, T. D. (2018). Principled missing data treatments. Prevention Science, 19(3), 284–294. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-016-0644-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, Z., Salekin, R. T., & Iselin, A. M. R. (2010). Psychopathic traits in youth: Is there evidence for primary and secondary subtypes? Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 38(3), 381–393. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-009-9372-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lochman, J. E., Wells, K. C., Qu, L., & Chen, L. (2013). Three year follow-up of coping power intervention effects: Evidence of neighborhood moderation? Prevention Science, 14(4), 364–376. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-012-0295-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lundahl, B., Risser, H. J., & Lovejoy, M. C. (2006). A meta-analysis of parent training: Moderators and follow-up effects. Clinical Psychology Review, 26(1), 86–104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2005.07.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, A. A., Finger, E. C., Fowler, K. A., Adalio, C. J., Jurkowitz, I. T. N., Schechter, J. C., & Blair, R. J. R. (2013). Empathic responsiveness in amygdala and anterior cingulate cortex in youths with psychopathic traits. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 54(8), 900–910. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12063

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, A. A., Finger, E. C., Mitchell, D. G. V., Reid, M. E., Sims, C., Kosson, D. S., & Blair, R. J. R. (2008). Reduced amygdala response to fearful expressions in children and adolescents with callous-unemotional traits and disruptive behavior disorders. American Journal of Psychiatry, 165(6), 712–720. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2007.07071145

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marshall, S. L., Ciarrochi, J., Parker, P. D., & Sahdra, B. K. (2020). Is self-compassion selfish? The development of self-compassion, empathy, and prosocial behavior in adolescence. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 30(S2), 472–484. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12492

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCoy, D. C. (2013). Early violence exposure and self-regulatory development: A bioecological systems perspective. Human Development, 56(4), 254–273. https://doi.org/10.1159/000353217

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDonald, C. C., & Richmond, T. R. (2008). The relationship between community violence exposure and mental health symptoms in urban adolescents. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 15(10), 833–849. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2850.2008.01321.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McMahon, R. J., Goulter, N., & Frick, P. J. (2021). Moderators of psychosocial intervention response for children and adolescents with conduct problems. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 50(4), 525–533. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2021.1894566

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meehan, A. J., Maughan, B., Cecil, C. A. M., & Barker, E. D. (2017). Interpersonal callousness and co-occurring anxiety: Developmental validity of an adolescent taxonomy. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 126(2), 225–236. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000235

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meffert, H., Thornton, L. C., Tyler, P. M., Botkin, M. L., Erway, A. K., Kolli, V., & Blair, R. J. R. (2018). Moderation of prior exposure to trauma on the inverse relationship between callous-unemotional traits and amygdala responses to fearful expressions: An exploratory study. Psychological Medicine, 48(15), 2530–2540. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291718000156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milledge, S. V., Cortese, S., Thompson, M., McEwan, F., Rolt, M., Meyer, B., & Eisenbarth, H. (2019). Peer relationships and prosocial behaviour differences across disruptive behaviours. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 28(6), 781–793. http://10.0.3.239/s00787-018-1249-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (1998-2017). Mplus User’s Guide. Eighth Edition. Los Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén

    Google Scholar 

  • Newman, D. A. (2003). Longitudinal modeling with randomly and systematically missing data: a simulation of ad hoc, maximum likelihood, and multiple imputation techniques. Organizational Research Methods, 6(3), 328–362. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428103254673

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Newman, D. A. (2014). Missing data: Five practical guidelines. Organizational Research Methods, 17(4), 372–411. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428114548590

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Northam, J. C., & Dadds, M. R. (2020). Is callous always cold? A critical review of the literature on emotion and the development of callous–unemotional traits in children. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 23(2), 265–283. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-019-00309-w

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Connor, L. E., Berry, J. W., Lewis, T., Mulherin, K., & Crisostomo, P. S. (2007). Empathy and depression: The moral system on overdrive. In T. Farrow & P. Woodruff (Eds.), Empathy in mental illness. (pp. 49–75). https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511543753.005

  • Pardini, D. A., & Byrd, A. L. (2012). Perceptions of aggressive conflicts and others’ distress in children with callous-unemotional traits: “I’ll show you who’s boss, even if you suffer and I get in trouble”. Journal of Child Psychology & Psychiatry, 53(3), 283–291. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2011.02487.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pardini, D. A., Lochman, J. E., & Frick, P. J. (2003). Callous/unemotional traits and social-cognitive processes in adjudicated youths. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 42(3), 364–371. https://doi.org/10.1097/00004583-200303000-00018

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pérez-González, A., Guilera, G., Pereda, N., & Jarne, A. (2017). Protective factors promoting resilience in the relation between child sexual victimization and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Child Abuse and Neglect, 72, 393–403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2017.09.006

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • The Philadelphia Inquirer. (2019). Crime in Philadelphia. Retrieved from http://data.philly.com/philly/crime/?.

  • Piehler, T. F., Distefano, R., Ausherbauer, K., Bloomquist, M. L., Almy, B., & August, G. J. (2020). Self-regulatory profiles and conduct problems in youth referred to juvenile diversion. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 30(2), 372–388. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12530

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rastogi, M., Massey-Hastings, N., & Wieling, E. (2012). Barriers to seeking mental health services in the Latino/a community: A qualitative analysis. Journal of Systemic Therapies, 31(4), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1521/jsyt.2012.31.4.1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ray, J. V., & Frick, P. J. (2020). Assessing callous-unemotional traits using the total score from the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits: A meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 49, 190–199. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2018.1504297

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ray, J. V., Frick, P. J., Thornton, L. C., Steinberg, L., & Cauffman, E. (2016). Positive and negative item wording and its influence on the assessment of callous-unemotional traits. Psychological Assessment, 28, 394–404. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000183

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roose, A., Bijttebier, P., Decoene, S., Claes, L., & Frick, P. J. (2010). Assessing the affective features of psychopathy in adolescence: A further validation of the inventory of callous and unemotional traits. Assessment, 17(1), 44–57. https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191109344153

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosa-Justicia, M., Saam, M. C., Flamarique, I., Borràs, R., Naaijen, J., Dietrich, A., & Castro-Fornieles, J. (2020). Subgrouping children and adolescents with disruptive behaviors: symptom profiles and the role of callous–unemotional traits. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-020-01662-w

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salzinger, S., Feldman, R. S., Stockhammer, T., & Hood, J. (2002). An ecological framework for understanding risk for exposure to community violence and the effects of exposure on children and adolescents. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 7(5), 423–451. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1359-1789(01)00078-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, D., & Hopmeyer, A. H. (2003). Community violence exposure and children’s academic functioning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95(1), 163–173. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.95.1.163

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, D., & Proctor, L. J. (2000). Community violence exposure and children’s social adjustment in the school peer group: The mediating roles of emotion regulation and social cognition. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68(4), 670–683. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.68.4.670

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sears, R. M., Schiff, H. C., & Ledoux, J. E. (2014). Molecular mechanisms of threat learning in the lateral nucleus of the amygdala. Progress in Molecular Biology and Translational Science, 122, 263–304. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-420170-5.00010-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shin, T., Davison, M. L., & Long, J. D. (2017). Maximum likelihood versus multiple imputation for missing data in small longitudinal samples with nonnormality. Psychological Methods, 22(3), 426–449. https://doi.org/10.1037/met0000094

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stadler, C., Kroeger, A., Weyers, P., Grasmann, D., Horschinek, M., Freitag, C., & Clement, H. W. W. (2011). Cortisol reactivity in boys with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and disruptive behavior problems: The impact of callous unemotional traits. Psychiatry Research, 187(1–2), 204–209. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2010.05.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sumner, S. A., Mercy, J. A., Dahlberg, L. L., Hillis, S. D., Klevens, J., & Houry, D. (2015). Violence in the United States: Status, challenges, and opportunities. Journal of the American Medical Association, 314(5), 478–488. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2015.8371

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tone, E. B., & Tully, E. C. (2014). Empathy as a “risky strength”: A multilevel examination of empathy and risk for internalizing disorders. Developmental Psychopathology, 26(4), 1547–1565. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579414001199

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vaughn, M. G., Edens, J. F., Howard, M. O., & Smith, S. T. (2009). An investigation of primary and secondary psychopathy in a statewide sample of incarcerated youth. Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, 7(3), 172–188. https://doi.org/10.1177/1541204009333792

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Viding, E., Fontaine, N. M. G., & McCrory, E. J. (2012). Antisocial behaviour in children with and without callous-unemotional traits. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 105(5), 195–200. https://doi.org/10.1258/jrsm.2011.110223

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • White, K. S., Bruce, S. E., Farrell, A. D., & Kliewer, W. (1998). Impact of exposure to community violence on anxiety: A longitudinal study of family social support as a protective factor for urban children. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 7(2), 187–203. http://10.0.3.255/A:1022943216319

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xiao, J., & Bulut, O. (2020). Evaluating the performances of missing data handling methods in ability estimation from sparse data. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 80(5), 932–954. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164420911136

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zahn-Waxler, C., Cole, P. M., & Barrett, K. C. (1991). Guilt and empathy: Sex differences and implications for the development of depression. In J. Garber & K. A. Dodge (Eds.), The development of emotion regulation and dysregulation (pp. 243–272). https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511663963.012

  • Zhang, W., Li, H., Gong, Y., & Ungar, M. (2013). Stressful events and depression among Chinese adolescents: The mitigating role of protective factors. School Psychology International, 34(5), 501–513. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143034312472760

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We are tremendously appreciative of the families, principals, and school staff who participated in this research. Thank you to Dr. Tania Giovannetti and Dr. Richard Heimberg for providing valuable feedback on earlier versions of this manuscript.

Funding

This study was funded in part by grants from Temple University Office of the Vice President for Research and College of Liberal Arts and National Institute of Mental Health 1 K01 MH073717–01 A2 awarded to Dr. Deborah Drabick.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Temple University, Weiss Hall 1701 N 13th Street, 19122-6011, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Valerie S. Everett & Deborah A. G. Drabick

Authors
  1. Valerie S. Everett
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Deborah A. G. Drabick
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Data were analyzed from a study implemented by Dr. Deborah Drabick. Secondary data analysis was performed by Valerie Everett. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Valerie Everett and Dr. Drabick commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Valerie S. Everett.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest/Competing Interests

The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

Ethics Approval

All procedures involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Institutional Review Board of Temple University and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments.

Consent to Participate

Informed consent was obtained from caregivers and teachers, and assent was obtained from child participants.

Consent for Publication

Participants signed informed consent regarding publishing their data.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Everett, V.S., Drabick, D.A.G. Community Violence Exposure and Generalized Anxiety Symptoms: Do Callous-Unemotional Behaviors Moderate this Relation Among Urban Youth?. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 51, 87–102 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-022-00973-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-022-00973-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation