Violence victimization and negative health correlates of youth in post-earthquake Haiti: Findings from the cross-sectional violence against children survey

•This cross-sectional study assessed youth approximately 1.5 years after the 2010 Haiti earthquake.•Youth reported high rates of violence exposure (females 49.93%, males 41.68%) post-earthquake.•Victimized youth were at increased risk for mental distress, suicidal ideation, sexual risk, and poor sex...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of affective disorders 2020-06, Vol.270, p.59-64
Main Authors: Lai, Betty S., Osborne, Melissa C., De Veauuse-Brown, Natasha, Swedo, Elizabeth A., Self-Brown, Shannon, Massetti, Greta M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Child
Children
Crime Victims
Cross-Sectional Studies
Disaster
Displacement
Earthquake
Earthquakes
Female
Haiti - epidemiology
Humans
Male
Risk Factors
Sex Offenses
Violence
Young Adult
Youth
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Summary:•This cross-sectional study assessed youth approximately 1.5 years after the 2010 Haiti earthquake.•Youth reported high rates of violence exposure (females 49.93%, males 41.68%) post-earthquake.•Victimized youth were at increased risk for mental distress, suicidal ideation, sexual risk, and poor sexual health compared to non-victimized youth.•Effective interventions that target violence prevention, and promote positive mental and physical health, are needed in the aftermath of disasters. We examined the prevalence of and relationships between violence victimization and negative health correlates of Haitian youth exposed to the 2010 earthquake. Participants were randomly selected 13–24 year-old youth (1457 females; 1459 males) living in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake. Data collected via Haiti's 2012 Violence against Children Survey (VACS) were analyzed. Participants reported violence victimization in the past 12 months (females: 49.93%; males: 41.68%), moderate-to-severe mental distress (females: 76.56%; males: 66.41%), and suicidal ideation (females: 26.79%; males: 8.05%). Compared to participants without experiences of violence, victims of violence had significantly higher mean number of sexual partners (females: 1.99, 95% CI: 1.81–2.16, p = .02; males: 4.33, 95% CI: 3.50–5.16, p = .03), mental distress (females: 80.39%, p = .01; males: 72.95%, p = .002), and suicidal ideation (females: 36.09%, p 
ISSN:0165-0327
1573-2517
DOI:10.1016/j.jad.2020.03.050