Aggressors and resilient youths in Medellin, Colombia: the need for a paradigm shift in order to overcome violence

Abstract

The objective of this study was to estimate the ratio of resilient youth and compare this to youth with aggressive behavior, and to youth who also exhibit sexually risky behavior and drug use. A cross-section study of a representative sample of people between aged between 12 and 60 who are residents of Medellin, Colombia, and its metropolitan area (N = 4,654) was employed using probabilistic multi-stage sampling. Youth between 14 and 26 years old were selected for the present analysis (n = 1,780). The proportion of resilient youth is 22.9%, of aggressors is 11.3%, and that of youth with other risky conduct is 65.8%. The high ratio of resilient youth calls for a reorientation of public policy toward prevention and control of violence, prioritizing the promotion of resilient behavior instead of continuing with tertiary prevention actions.

Is there room for resilience? A scoping review and critique of substance use literature and its utilization of the concept of resilience

“… [ 158 ] Draper et al, 2015; ( n = 210); Australia Older adults (60+) in community health setting CD-RISC 2 (short) [ 149 ] Dufour & Nadeau 2001; ( n = 20 v. n = 20); Canada Adult women sexually abused during childhood Resiliency is a person’s ability to return to a previous or even a superior level of adjustment after having experienced a stressful event (Steinhauer, 1998). [ 128 ] Duque et al, 2013; ( n = 1780); Colombia • Youth (14–26 years) with risk experiences Resilience is dynamic process molded by culture, where the following factors intervene: making a decision about personal development; what the young person makes of the goods, services, and formal and informal opportunities that are in their reach; and the availability of these (Ungar, 2005). [ 86 ] Eisen et al, 2014; ( n = 512); US Veterans returning home from Iraq & Afghanistan Bartone Dispositional Resilience (Hardiness) to Stress Scale Resilience is the ability of adults who are exposed to highly stressful events, such as the violent, life threatening situations encountered in combat, to maintain healthy psychological and physical functioning (Bonanno, 2004).…”

“…For example, O’Donnell et al [ 110 ] differentiate between students who witness community violence and those who are personally victimized, when measuring their respective risk for drug involvement. Meanwhile, Duque and his fellow researchers [ 128 ] ascertain a minimum level of risk exposure among Colombian youth, by defining a resilient youth as: “one that has experienced three or more risk factors but has not presented any of the severe aggressive behaviors or any of the other risky behaviors… [including drug use]” ([ 128 ], p. 2212).…”

“…Although a number of researchers support process-based definitions of resilience, many studies, nevertheless, produce static and outcome-focused conceptualizations of resilience (e.g., [ 85 , 128 , 132 ]). However, several researchers stress the necessity to conceptualize resilience as a process in future studies and advocate for future longitudinal research in order to “capture constructs over time”, examining specific interactions between risks, protective factors, resilience, and drug use (e.g., [ 80 , 107 , 167 ]).…”

El desarrollo personal de los jóvenes de Medellín, Colombia: más allá de las conductas de riesgo y de resiliencia

“…Saúde Pública 2016; 32(11):e00103614 | www.ensp.fiocruz.br/csp Introducción Pese a la importancia de los estudios de prevalencia, que han permitido identificar la magnitud de conductas de riesgo 1,2 y de resiliencia en la población joven de Medellín, Colombia 3 ; como alternativa teórica, que muestra la complejidad en relación con los comportamientos, se tiene la perspectiva contextual evolutiva, que concibe el desarrollo humano desde un modelo integrado de las relaciones indivíduo-contexto, y no solamente desde las características del organismo. Esta concepción de desarrollo considera que la interacción de la persona con el ambiente es activa y bidireccional, lo que conlleva una visión más dinámica e integral del joven, en términos de su plasticidad e interacción con los diferentes niveles (micro, meso, macro) del contexto, con lo que llama la atención hacia estudios más sensibles a mostrar la connotación dinámica del desarrollo 4,5,6 .…”

“…Medellín, ciudad aún afectada por la violencia 12 , con más de dos millones de habitantes, y cerca de 285.000 jóvenes de 13 a 20 años, la mitad de ellos de estrato socioeconómi-co bajo 13 , es una ciudad de contrastes, la educación media, aunque con altibajos, se ratificó en 2013 con 79,2% en cobertura educativa y tras una cobertura creciente en educación superior, para 2012 cerró en una tasa bruta de 53,2% 14 ; no obstante, en calidad de la educación básica, el 45,5% de los estudiantes no alcanzaron el nivel mínimo en lectura, y en matemáticas el 67,2% 12 , lo que muestra coherencia con el Índice de Desarrollo Juvenil (72,5%) 15 en el que hay mayores logros en el acceso a bienes y servicios que en el desarrollo de los jóvenes, las dimensiones de mayor aporte son educación (19), bienes y servicios (16,8) y salud (11,2); y las que menos aportan: desarrollo del ser del joven (3,9), democracia y participación (2,9) y trabajo decente (0,8).…”