Emotional and Behavioral Impact of Exposure to Community Violence in Inner-City Adolescents

Used multiple methods and measures (i.e., youth report, psychiatric interviews, psychophysiological assessment) to investigate the emotional and behavioral impacts of exposure to community violence. Participants were 185 inner-city high school students (M age = 15.4 years; 42% female; 90% African Am...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of clinical child and adolescent psychology 2001-06, Vol.30 (2), p.199-206
Main Authors: Cooley-Quille, Michele, Boyd, Rhonda C., Frantz, Erika, Walsh, James
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adjustment
Adolescent
Adolescents
Affective Symptoms - etiology
Affective Symptoms - psychology
Anxiety - etiology
Anxiety - psychology
Child psychology
Community
Emotions
Ethnic Groups
Exposure
Fear
Female
Health Surveys
Heart Rate
Humans
Inner cities
Inner city
Male
Mass Media
Personality Disorders
Urban Population
USA
Violence
Violence - psychology
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Summary:Used multiple methods and measures (i.e., youth report, psychiatric interviews, psychophysiological assessment) to investigate the emotional and behavioral impacts of exposure to community violence. Participants were 185 inner-city high school students (M age = 15.4 years; 42% female; 90% African American). Youth with high levels of community violence exposure reported more fears, anxiety, internalizing behavior, and negative life experiences than those with low exposure. No depression or externalizing behavior differences were observed. In a psychophysiological assessment in which adolescents watched a montage of media violence, youth exposed to high levels of community violence had lower baseline heart rates than those with low exposure. There were no between-group differences in physiologic reactivity. Regression analyses revealed that community violence exposure predicted posttraumatic stress and separation anxiety symptoms. The results suggest a significant link between community violence exposure and anxiety symptomatology. Clinical implications are discussed.
ISSN:1537-4416
0047-228X
1537-4424
DOI:10.1207/S15374424JCCP3002_7