The Protective Effects of Neighborhood Collective Efficacy on Adolescent Substance Use and Violence Following Exposure to Violence

Abstract

Research has demonstrated that exposure to violence can result in many negative consequences for youth, but the degree to which neighborhood conditions may foster resiliency among victims is not well understood. This study tests the hypothesis that neighborhood collective efficacy attenuates the relationship between adolescent exposure to violence, substance use, and violence. Data were collected from 1,661–1,718 adolescents participating in the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN), who were diverse in terms of sex (51% male, 49% female), race/ethnicity (48% Hispanic, 34% African American, 14% Caucasian, and 4% other race/ethnicity), and age (mean age 12 years; range: 8–16). Information on neighborhood collective efficacy was obtained from adult residents, and data from the 1990 U.S. Census were used to control for neighborhood disadvantage. Based on hierarchical modeling techniques to adjust for the clustered data, Bernoulli models indicated that more exposure to violence was associated with a greater likelihood of tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use and perpetration of violence. Poisson models suggested that victimization was also related to a greater variety of substance use and violent behaviors. A moderating effect of collective efficacy was found in models assessing the variety of substance use; the relationship between victimization and substance use was weaker for youth in neighborhoods with higher versus lower levels of collective efficacy. These findings are consistent with literature indicating that social support can ameliorate the negative impact of victimization. This investigation extends this research to show that neighborhood social support can also help to promote resiliency among adolescents.

A multi-level analysis of the impact of neighborhood structural and social factors on adolescent substance use

“…In fact, analyses did not include all possible contextual risk factors for substance use, such as physical or social disorder (e.g., Furr-Holden et al, 2011), tobacco and alcohol outlet density (e.g., Maimon and Browning, 2012; Tobler et al, 2009) and neighborhood levels of crime (e.g., Mrug and Windle, 2009). In addition, analyses did not examine the degree to which neighborhood factors moderated the impact of individual, peer and family influences on adolescent substance use, although other studies have shown such results (Fagan et al, 2014; Lo et al, 2006; Snedker et al, 2009; Wright et al, in press; Zimmerman and Vasquez, 2011). Likewise, we did not assess if neighborhood processes were mediated by influences in other contexts, as also demonstrated in past research (Chuang et al, 2005; Gibbons et al, 2004; Tobler et al, 2009).…”

Risk and protective factors for comorbid internalizing and externalizing problems among economically disadvantaged African American youth

“…Collective efficacy may also buffer the risk effect of neighborhood violence on mental health problems, such as substance use (Fagan, Wright, & Pinchevsky, 2014) and internalizing and externalizing problems (Browning et al, 2014). Beyond violence exposure, evidence for any protective effect of collective efficacy on other outcomes has rarely been studied in youth of any race.…”

Examination of the Relative Effects of Neighborhoods and Schools on Juvenile Delinquency: A Multilevel Cross-Classified Model Approach

“…More recently, researchers have applied the concept of "collective efficacy" to explain neighborhood effect on crime and delinquency (Fagan and Wright 2012;Fagan, Wright, and Pinchevsky 2014;Morenoff et al 2001;Sampson 2006;Sampson et al 1997Sampson et al , 2005. Collective efficacy is "social cohesion among neighbors combined with their willingness to intervene on behalf of the common good" (Sampson et al 1997:918).…”

“…Collective efficacy is "social cohesion among neighbors combined with their willingness to intervene on behalf of the common good" (Sampson et al 1997:918). By analyzing the data from Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, several researchers have reported that the effects of social structural characteristics such as concentrated disadvantage and residential instability were mediated by collective efficacy (Sampson et al 1997), and that the effect of exposure to violence on substance abuse (Fagan et al 2014) or delinquency (Molnar et al 2008) was moderated by neighborhood collective efficacy. Also, it was reported that community characteristics such as "local organizations," "voluntary associations," and "friend/kinship networks" played important roles in inhibiting delinquency as long as they facilitated the collective efficacy of residents in achieving social control (Morenoff et al 2001).…”