Adolescent obesity and weapon carrying at school

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis study examined the association between obesity and weapon carrying at school, controlling for measures representing the victimization and violent lifestyle theses. We investigated the obesity–weapon carrying association using two waves of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Results find that obesity is associated with a heightened risk of weapon carrying at school for males. While a measure representing victimization was found to be predictive of weapon carrying at school, there was little evidence that victimization mediated the link between obesity and the dependent variable. One novel finding that is adduced from the results is that obesity is associated with gang membership; antigang efforts/initiatives need to be inclusive of obese youth if these initiatives are to maximize their success.