Urban youth as witnesses to violence: Beginning assessment and treatment efforts

The Association Between Types of Violence Exposure and Youths' Mental Health Problems

“…Responses were summed (Cronbach's alpha=.76). Because children exhibit some different posttraumatic stress symptoms than adults (Warner & Weist, 1996), we used a symptom count rather than a diagnosis. At the time of the study, neither the DISC nor the DIS provided a diagnostic measure of PTSD in adolescents.…”

Definitional and measurement issues in the study of community violence among children and youths

“…The term "community" has also frequently been employed in studies of community violence to designate specific socioecological contexts forming the backdrop to violent events, most notably urban or inner city settings (e.g., Bell & Jenkins, 1993;Freeman et al, 1993;Horowitz et al, 1995;Schwab-Stone et al, 1995;Shubiner et al, 1993;Warner & Weist, 1996). Indeed, the large majority of studies of community violence have drawn exclusively from urban, lower income, and often African American populations [Lorion (1998), work by Singer et al (1995), and the ongoing Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods reported by Selner-O'Hagan et al(1998) are notable exceptions].…”

“…Freeman et al, 1993;Garbarino et al, 1992;Mihalic & Elliott, 1997;Osofsky et al, 1993;Overstreet, Dempsey, Graham, & Moely, 1999;Pynoos et al, 1987). Psychosocial sequelae observed in witnesses to violence, for example, have prompted labels such as "indirect victims" (Lorion & Saltzman, 1993), "co-victims" (Shakoor & Chalmers, 1991;Warner & Weist, 1996), and "secondary victims" . Even hearing about violent incidents has been associated with psychosocial sequelae in children and youths, including a number of reported PTSD symptoms (Horowitz et al, 1995).…”

“…Evidence suggests that victims of chronic community violence are also likely to experience violence as witnesses, as relatives or friends of victims, and are likely to hear of violent incidents involving family, friends, and unknown others (Bell & Jenkins, 1993;Campbell & Schwarz, 1996;Cooley-Quille et al, 1995;Freeman et al, 1993;Garbarino et al, 1992;Gladstein et al, 1992;Hammond & Yung, 1993;Miller et al, 1999;Schubiner et al, 1993;Warner & Weist, 1996). Further, evidence suggests that youngsters who have been exposed to violence are more likely to become perpetrators of violence against others (Bell, 1991;Bell & Jenkins, 1993;DuRant et al, 1994a;DuRant et al, 1994b;Garbarino et al, 1992;Schwab-Stone et al, 1995), and that some youngsters experience violence as a result of escalating interpersonal conflicts with acquaintances, or as accomplices to gang or group violence, sometimes acting as unwilling or coerced participants (Guterman & Cameron, 1997;Hammond & Yung, 1993;Hausman , Spivack, Roeber, & Prothrow-Stith, 1989).…”

A Questionnaire to Measure Factors That Protect Youth Against Stressors of Inner-City Life

“…They are disproportionately exposed to the detrimental effects of poverty and its concomitant conditions, including family instability, child abuse and neglect, crime, drugs, and violence (1,2). Chronic and often intense exposure to these stressors in turn contributes to elevated rates of school dropout, unemployment, adolescent pregnancy, delinquency, and other problems (3).…”