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Community Violence Exposure and Positive Youth Development in Urban Youth

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Abstract

Youth in urban environments are exposed to community violence, yet some do well and continue on a positive developmental trajectory. This study investigated the relationships between lifetime community violence exposure (including total, hearing about, witnessing, and victimization), family functioning, and positive youth development (PYD) among 110 urban youth ages 10–16 years (54% female) using a paper and pen self-report survey. This cross-sectional study was part of an interdisciplinary community-based participatory research effort in West/Southwest Philadelphia. Almost 97% of the sample reported some type of community violence exposure. Controlling for presence of mother in the home and presence of father in the home, separate linear regression models for PYD by each type of community violence exposure indicated that gender and family functioning were significantly associated with PYD. None of the types of community violence exposure were significant in the models. Significant interactions between gender and presence of mother in the home and gender and family functioning helped better explain these relationships for some of the types of community violence exposure. Presence of mother was associated with higher PYD for girls, but not for boys. Boys with poor family functioning had lower PYD than girls with poor family functioning. This study helps to better delineate relationships between CVE and PYD by adding new knowledge to the literature on the role of family functioning. Points of intervention should focus on families, with attention to parental figures in the home and overall family functioning.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by Award Number F31NR011107 (PI: Catherine C. McDonald) from the National Institute of Nursing Research. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute of Nursing Research or the National Institutes of Health. This work was also supported by the cooperative agreement number 5 U49 CE001093 from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We gratefully acknowledge Jamison Fargo, Alexandra Hanlon, and Douglas Wiebe for their guidance on statistical analyses.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Pennsylvania, School of Nursing, Center for Health Equity Research, 2L, 418 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA, 19104-4217, USA

    Catherine C. McDonald

  2. Philadelphia Collaborative Violence Prevention Center, 3535 Market St. Suite 1150, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Catherine C. McDonald, Nancy Kassam-Adams & Therese S. Richmond

  3. Center for Health Equity Research, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Janet A. Deatrick

  4. The Center for Injury Research and Prevention, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Nancy Kassam-Adams

  5. Division of Biobehavioral & Health Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, School of Nursing, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Therese S. Richmond

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  1. Catherine C. McDonald
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  4. Therese S. Richmond
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Correspondence to Catherine C. McDonald.

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McDonald, C.C., Deatrick, J.A., Kassam-Adams, N. et al. Community Violence Exposure and Positive Youth Development in Urban Youth. J Community Health 36, 925–932 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-011-9391-5

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