Abstract
Based on a populational survey conducted among 1400 adolescents aged between 12 and 17 years old, the aim of this study is to assess the relationships between their community violence experiences and their psychological health (anger, depressive symptoms, and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms). One MANOVA confirms that both boys and girls who report at least one incident of physical community violence present more psychological difficulties, especially anger. Subsequent MANOVAs show that anger intensity varies depending on whether the youth was a direct victim or a witness only, as well as on the diversity of the types of violent manifestations and on acquaintance with the perpetrator, whereas the presence of injuries has no significant effect. This study highlights the importance of considering the context of the community violence incident, to clearly understand its relationships with the youth’s psychological difficulties.
Highlights
It is expected that (5) youth who were acquainted with their perpetrator will present more anger, post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms, and depressive symptoms than those assaulted by a stranger; and (6) youth who were physically injured will present more PTS symptoms than those who were not
Correlations were calculated for the different variables of interest based on the sub-samples identified above, namely all the youth in the sample (N = 1400), victims and witnesses of physical community violence (n = 435), and direct victims (n = 217)
Given current concerns regarding youth’s mental health, the main contribution of this study is to show that experiences of physical community violence could contribute to disturbing girls and boys alike, notably by feeding feelings of anger
Summary
Objectives and HypothesesThe purpose of this study is to document the relationships between community violence exposure and three indicators of psychological health in youth. Among youth reporting at least one experience of physical community violence during the year, the study aims to evaluate whether multiple victimization experiences, as well as being a victim rather than only a witness, leads to differences in youth’s psychological health. Among young victims, the study aims to document whether being acquainted with the perpetrator and sustaining injuries lead to differences in the psychological health of youth having suffered physical community violence. In this regard, it is expected that (5) youth who were acquainted with their perpetrator will present more anger, PTS symptoms, and depressive symptoms than those assaulted by a stranger; and (6) youth who were physically injured will present more PTS symptoms than those who were not
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