Pathways to Recurrent Trauma Among Young Black Men: Traumatic Stress, Substance Use, and the “Code of the Street”

Abstract

Recurrent interpersonal violence is a major cause of death and disability among young Black men. Quantitative studies have uncovered factors associated with reinjury, but little is known about how these factors work together. We interviewed young Black male victims to understand their experience of violence. Qualitative analysis of their narratives revealed how their struggle to reestablish safety shaped their response to injury. Aspects of the "code of the street" (including the need for respect) and lack of faith in the police combined with traumatic stress and substance use to accentuate their sense of vulnerability. Victims then reacted to protect themselves in ways that could increase their risk of reinjury. We describe a model with implications for reducing rates of recurrent violent injuries.

Adolescent Experiences of Violence and Relation to Violence Perpetration beyond Young Adulthood among an Urban Sample of Black and African American Males

“…[1][2][3][4] Current study findings are also consistent with substantial research indicating that violence experienced during adolescence increases risk for involvement in high risk behaviors such as criminal activity/deviance, 3,31 drug and alcohol use, 14,22,23 and violence perpetration, [32][33][34] as well as a number of negative health and psychosocial effects 19,20,22,35 in adulthood. More specifically, a number of studies focusing on street violence involvement as well as violence perpetrated against an intimate partner have highlighted men's previous experiences as victims to be a significant factor driving these forms of violence perpetration later in life.…”

“…Furthermore, this association remained significant after accounting for childhood experiences of victimization. While previous work has documented the multitude of negative health effects from early experiences of victimization (e.g., poor mental health outcomes), [16][17][18][19][20][21] these findings highlight the long-term impact specific to adolescent victimization beyond young adulthood, and contribution to violence perpetration in low income Black communities.…”

“…Violence experienced during adolescence differs from victimization during childhood because it is more likely to be perpetrated both within and outside families. 3,20 Thus, more work is needed to understand the long-term effects beyond young adulthood specific to adolescent victimization, particularly in terms of impact on violence perpetration.…”

Who Shot Ya? How Emergency Departments Can Collect Reliable Police Shooting Data

“…The data used for this paper were collected as part of 20,24 This longitudinal qualitative analysis was undertaken to investigate significant individual and environmental risk factors associated with repeat ED visits for violence among young Black men. In addition, the study aimed to investigate how young Black men accessed continued health care for their traumatic injuries (both physical and psychological) following discharge from the hospital.…”

“…Qualitative studies on recurrent trauma among young Black men found that harassment and racial profiling by the police were significant sources of trauma and stress. 20 Researchers found that young Black men expressed a lack of faith in the police and that they could not depend on the police to protect them from danger.…”