The Family and Community Violence Prevention (FCVP) Program was established in 1994 to address the escalation of youth violence among ethnic minorities. This federally funded program adapted the public health model and organized Family Life Centers throughout the country to serve youth who were considered to be at risk for violence and other abusive behaviors. The purpose of this three-year study, 1999-2002, was to determine the effectiveness of the FCVP Program's six-component curriculum in reducing violence among participants. Results from posttest scores of 2,315 youth showed girls 12 and over to be most at risk for deviant behaviors; the program was most effective with boys under age 12. Academic performance and bonding to school were protective factors whereas exposure to violence was a risk factor for all four ethnic groups studied--African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, and Native Hawaiians. EDITORS' STRATEGIC IMPLICATIONS: Cultural anthropologists, public health specialists, and school officials should know that prevention programs can be designed to reflect the unique, culturally appropriate norms of specific ethnic minority groups, even as these programs address shared risk factors. The authors discuss the promising strategy of enhancing academic performance and school bonding to serve as protective factors against school violence, but they also describe age, gender, and cultural differences that must be addressed in future research.
This study sought to determine the relationship between an adolescent's home environment and his/her involvement in conduct disorder. The study was based on a sample of 556 African American adolescents (85% males) aged thirteen to seventeen and enrolled in violence prevention programs at historically black colleges and Universities (HBCUs) located in eight states and the District of Columbia. The HBCUs in this study have student bodies that are predominantly African American. Data were collected using a condensed version of the Children's Structured Assessment for the Genetics of Alcoholism (C-SAGA). The results showed that a higher proportion of females than males started physical fights, used weapons to harm, and ran away from home. Proportionately, more males deliberately set fires and destroyed property. The extended family, parents' time spent with the child, home discipline, and family rules were significantly related (p < .001) to incidents of conduct disorder. Implications for social service are suggested.
The authors examined the relationship between students at a Black university who were adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs) and students who were not children of alcoholics (non-ACOAs) regarding levels of self-esteem, health in the family of origin, and social support during adolescence. The study participants were African American undergraduate students who responded to five surveys. The only significant relationship found was with results from the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST). Level of drinking was significantly related to the self-esteem of the ACOAs. A significant positive correlation between self-esteem and social support (mother) for the ACOAs and a negative correlation between self-esteem and health in the family were also found. The findings are consistent with earlier reports in which an association was found between mother support and health of the family.
The study examined the relationship between impulse control and violence in terms of past feelings and acts among African American males enrolled in Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Data were gathered from a sample of 1,874 male undergraduates in eleven colleges and universities with predominantly African-American students. Less than six percent were classified as impulsive, and even less than half of the impulsive males had past feelings and acts of violence. The study offers strategies for impulse control which may help to further minimize incidents of violence on the college campus.Violence is a national plague that touches every facet of American society, including the college campus. A study by Koss, Gidycz and Wisniewski (1987), estimates that as many as 50 percent of college women have experienced some form of unwanted sexual contact including rape and attempted rape. While a large number of studies (Hannan and Burkhart, 1993;Rivinus and Larimer, 1993;Pezza, 1995) attribute campus violence to alcohol and other substance abuse, Rodney, Tachia, and Rodney (1997) have shown that nurturing from the family and social support from the mother and an unrelated adult received during adolescence have a moderating effect on violence among African-American college males, However, the epidemic of violence is a complex social problem that must be tackled from other perspectives. Reid and Calis (1989) have noted that in the family environment with patterns and causes for conflict, the inability to maintain control of one's impulses will often lead to violent acts. The investigation of the role of impulsivity is, therefore, an important element not only in understanding the origins of violence, but also in the formulation of effective strategies for violence prevention and reduction.In a clinical study of impulsive people (Webster, 1997), many were found to act impulsively in two or more behavioral areas at a time, or would become subject to an impulse soon after overcoming another. Also, from his clinical experiences, Wishnie (1977) determined that although a wide range of impulsivity is treatable, prevention, rather than treatment of this disorder, is preferable. In particular, his preference includes such measures as early diagnosis of learning and other disorders, adequate child nutrition, and stable early childhood development, among others. These preventive measures are particularly relevant in an environment that is rife with economic depri-
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