Violence Related Behaviors and Weapon Carrying Among Hispanic Adolescents: Results from the National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2001-2015

Interactions Between Forced Sexual Intercourse Victimization and Gender on Violent Behaviors: Youth Risk Behavior Survey 2017-2019

In recent years, the United States has seen an increase in gun-related violence and school shootings. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the incidence of gun carrying among high-school students has declined. Nevertheless, an examination of the underlying factors that increase the risk of violence-related behaviors is necessary to develop interventions to decrease gun use among high-school students. General Strain Theory (GST) predicts that victims of violence are (a) significantly more likely to engage in violent behaviors and (b) the increased risk of violent behavior by persons who experience violence is significantly greater among male victims. This research aims to test these predictions of the strain theory with data from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS). To that end, it investigates whether the relationship between forced sexual intercourse victimization (FSIV) and gun or weapon carrying or physical fighting is significantly greater among male students. Using R and pooled data from the nationally representative YRBS (2017 and 2019), additive interactions were estimated according to Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology guidelines to determine the association between FSIV and weapon carry, gun carry, or physical fighting. Multiplicative interactions and odds ratios were also estimated for comparison. Results show a high risk of gun and weapon carrying and physical fighting among both male and female students who experience FSIV and a significant relationship between FSIV and increased risk of these violence-related behaviors. Additive interactions show that the relationship between FSIV and these violent behaviors is significantly greater among male students than female students. Results confirm the predictions of GST and show that FSIV significantly increases the risk of gun carrying and other violence-related behaviors among male and female U.S. high-school students; the increased risk is significantly greater among male students.

Trends in youth risk behaviours and firearm injury in the USA over 20 years

BACKGROUND

Firearm injuries are the leading cause of death in children and adolescents in the USA. We hypothesised that high rates of risky behaviour in high school students are associated with firearm injury and death in this population.

METHODS

We obtained data from the Youth Behaviour Risk Survey of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and combined it with data from the CDC Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System, CDC Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research and American Community Survey, 2001-2020. We examined trends over time using a non-parametric test for trends.

RESULTS

The percentage of high school-aged youth carrying a weapon in the preceding 30 days ranged from 13.2% in 2019 to 18.5% in 2005, without a statistically significant trend over time (p=0.051). Those carrying a weapon to school peaked at 6.5% in 2005 and steadily downtrended to 2.8% in 2019 (p=0.004). Boys consistently reported higher rates of weapon carriage, with white boys reporting higher rates than black boys. Firearm homicides among adolescents 14-18 years showed no significant change, ranging from 4.0 per 100k in 2013 to 8.3 per 100k in 2020. This varied considerably by sex and race, with black boys suffering a rate of nearly 60 per 100 000 in 2020 and white girls rarely exceeding 1/100 000 during the study period.

CONCLUSION

Self-reported weapon carriage among teens in the USA has steadily downtrended over time. However, shooting injuries and deaths have not. While the former suggests progress, the latter remains concerning.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III; retrospective cohort study.

Associations Between Exposure to School Violence and Weapon Carrying at School

INTRODUCTION

Among U.S. high-school students, interpersonal violence and victimizations often occur on school property. The presence of a weapon can increase the potential for injury and death resulting from interpersonal conflict. This study examines the associations between exposure to school violence and weapon carrying on school property among U.S. high-school students.

METHODS

Data from the 2017 and 2019 national Youth Risk Behavior Surveys were combined (N=28,442) and analyzed in 2022. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to calculate sex-stratified, adjusted (for race/ethnicity, grade, sexual identity, current substance use, suicidal thoughts, and history of concussion) prevalence ratios. Prevalence ratios were considered statistically significant if 95% CIs did not include 1.0.

RESULTS

Male students (4.7%) were more likely than female students (1.8%) to report carrying a weapon at school during the 30 days preceding the survey. Weapon carrying at school was more prevalent among students who were threatened or injured with a weapon at school (male students, adjusted prevalence ratio=3.45; female students, adjusted prevalence ratio=3.90), among students who were involved in a physical fight at school (male students, adjusted prevalence ratio=3.44; female students, adjusted prevalence ratio=3.72), among students who missed school because they did not feel safe (male students, adjusted prevalence ratio=1.98; female students, adjusted prevalence ratio=2.97), and among male students who were bullied at school (adjusted prevalence ratio=1.72) than among students who did not experience school violence.

CONCLUSIONS

Increased emphasis on safe and supportive school environments, where all types of interpersonal violence are less likely to occur, and increased access to programs and services to promote mental health, prevent violence, and deter weapon use are needed.

Hispanic Child Suicides in the United States, 2010-2019

Suicides in Hispanic adolescents have been increasing significantly. Less clear is the extent of suicides in Hispanic children younger than 12 years of age. The purpose of this study was to explore the trends and methods of suicides in Hispanic children from 2010 to 2019 (latest data available across the United States). Suicide is the 7th leading cause of death for Hispanic children. Hispanic child suicides statistically significantly increased during the decade. From 2010 to 2019, Hispanic child suicide rates increased by 92.3%. The suicide deaths were primarily in boys (59.6%) and among those 10-12 years of age (94.9%). Hispanic child suicides were most common in the West and South and least common in the Northeastern US The method used to commit suicide was overwhelmingly (76-85%) hanging/strangulation/suffocation. To help assure Hispanic children flourish and mature into healthy adults, it is essential that policymakers commit more resources for access to healthcare for all youths and that research funding for minorities include research regarding Hispanic children's suicide risk factors, protective factors, and effective interventions to reduce suicides of Hispanic children.

Associations between having been threatened or injured with a weapon and substance use and mental health among high school students in the United States

Being threatened or injured with a weapon is a serious form of physical bullying. Little is known about the effects of being threatened or injured with a weapon on substance use and mental health among adolescents. A secondary analysis of 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Survey data assessed the associations between having been threatened or injured with a weapon and substance use (binge drinking, marijuana, tobacco use, prescription medication misuse) and mental health (feeling sad or hopeless, considering suicide). Multiple logistic regression models with complex survey weights were used, controlling for potential confounders. Approximately 6.0% of students reported having been threatened/injured with a weapon. After adjusting for covariates, having been threatened/injured with a weapon was associated with binge drinking (AOR = 2.5; 95% CI: 1.9-3.4), marijuana (AOR = 2.1; 95% CI: 1.6-2.7), tobacco use (AOR = 2.6; 95% CI: 2.0-3.5), and misuse of prescription medication (AOR = 2.2; 95% CI: 1.6-3.0) compared with students who have not been threatened/injured. Having been threatened/injured with a weapon was associated with 1.6 times the odds (95% CI: 1.2-2.2) of feeling sad/hopeless and 1.7 times the odds (95% CI: 1.3-2.3) of considering suicide. Having been threatened or injured with a weapon is an important public health issue associated with negative mental health and substance use.

Age at first alcohol use and weapon carrying among adolescents: Findings from the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey

BACKGROUND

Although studies have investigated the association between alcohol use and violent behaviors such as weapon carrying, few studies have examined the association between age at first alcohol use and weapon-carrying among adolescents. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between age at first alcohol use and weapon carrying among adolescents.

METHODS

Data for this study came from the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. An analytic sample of 13,442 adolescents aged 14-18 years old (51% female) was analyzed using binary logistic regression. The outcome variable investigated in this study was weapon carrying during the past 30 days, and the main explanatory variable investigated was age at first alcohol use.

RESULTS

Of the 13,442 adolescents, 13.5% carried a weapon during the past 30 days, and 15.4% reported having their first alcoholic drink before age 13. In the multivariable logistic regression, adolescents who reported having alcohol before age 13 had more than double the odds of carrying a weapon when compared to those who never had alcohol before age 13 (AOR = 2.32, p < .001, 95% CI = 1.87-2.89). Other significant factors associated with weapon carrying include male gender, victim of bullying, teen dating violence, sexual violence, suicidal ideation, and history of substance use. Adolescents who self-identified as Black/African American or Hispanic were significantly less likely to carry a weapon when compared to adolescents who self-identified as non-Hispanic White.

CONCLUSION

The findings of this study underscore the importance of developing age appropriate intervention strategies to curb early initiation of alcohol use and weapon carrying among adolescents.

Correlates of school gun carrying among black, hispanic, and white male adolescents: Evidence from a nationally representative sample of youth

Previous studies have found that individual, environmental, geographic, and demographic factors correlate with adolescent gun carrying. Comparatively less research has focused on identifying correlates of adolescent gun carrying to schools. The current study examined whether previously identified factors associated with adolescent gun carrying similarly predict adolescent school gun carrying. Logistic regression models were used to predict risk of school gun carrying among a nationally representative sample of adolescent males (n = 4559). Results revealed that a range of individual- and environmental-level factors increased the odds of school gun carrying, including a 13% increased likelihood of carrying a gun to school among individuals with more symptoms of anxiety and depression. Additionally, analyses indicated that several individual- and environmental-level factors differentially increase the likelihood of school gun carrying across race and ethnicity. Policies aimed at reducing gun carrying in schools should address both the known correlates of adolescent school gun carrying broadly and the specific correlates of gun carrying as they vary across particular groups of youth. Future research should attempt to replicate these and other studies findings across diverse samples of adolescents and identify other potential correlates of adolescent school gun carrying not previously addressed. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Mental health, school-level, and geographic factors are associated with school guncarrying differentially across race and ethnicity. Programming efforts may benefit fromconsidering the influence of race/ethnicity on dynamic risk factors for school guncarrying when designing and implementing school safety measures.

Dynamic Risk Factors for Handgun Carrying: Are There Developmental or Sex Differences?

Objective: This study examines the effects of dynamic risk factors on handgun carrying from adolescence into young adulthood.Method: A nationally representative sample of 8,679 individuals (ages 12-26; 51.1% male; 58% White, 26.8% African American; 21.2% Hispanic ethnicity) from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1997 cohort) interviewed at least three times across nine annual waves is used to estimate effects on handgun carrying. Key predictors include gang membership, selling and using drugs, violent crime, and arrest. Using mixed effects models, we focus on within-individual effects across three timeframes from ages 12 to 26: 1) predictors and handgun carrying measured concurrently, 2) predictors measured across one year and handgun carrying measured in the final month of the same year, and 3) predictors measured in the wave before handgun carrying. We also contrast estimates by sex and age.Results: All theoretically relevant predictors statistically significantly predict handgun carrying across the first two timeframes. However, none are statistically significant predictors of handgun carrying in the following year. Few significant sex and age differences emerge.Conclusions: Handgun carrying is an ephemeral behavior particularly during adolescence. The predictors of handgun carrying, which are grounded in gangs, drug use/sale, and crime involvement, appear to have short-term impacts that are consistent across age as well as across sex. Consequently, future work should focus on shorter-term changes in models and there is no evidence that intervention efforts must take fundamentally different approaches to reduce handgun use among males versus females or adolescents versus adults.

Violent Behaviors, Weapon Carrying, and Firearm Homicide Trends in African American Adolescents, 2001-2015

African American youths have the highest risk for firearm and other weapon related homicides. This study utilized the national Youth Risk Behavior Surveys from 2001 to 2015 to assess trends in violence related behaviors and weapon carrying of African American adolescents. Our analyses found statistically significant reductions in physical fighting and weapon carrying among African American male adolescents from 2007 to 2015. Planning suicide increased in both male and female African American adolescents since 2007. In addition, the number of firearm homicides increased in African American males. African American females and males had groups of items highly predictive of weapon carrying behaviors: alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use and violent risk behaviors. Both female and male students who made mostly A's or B's in school were significantly less likely to carry weapons in and out of school. Our findings indicate that firearm homicides have increased in African American adolescents, but weapon carrying in school going adolescents has significantly declined. School engagement and satisfactory school performance seems to have a significant protective effect on firearm homicides and violent behavior risks in African American adolescents.

Youth Violence and Related Risk Factors: A Cross-sectional Study in 2800 Adolescents

Background:

Youth violence is an important public health challenge, and the literature on this problem in developing countries has been limited. The present study aims to determine the prevalence of violence its related risk factors in in a sample of students in Isfahan, Iran.

Materials and Methods:

In this cross-sectional study, 2800 middle and high school, aged 11–18 years in urban and rural areas selected in a multistage sampling procedure and were questioned using a self-administered questionnaire. Collected data included sociodemographic and family characteristics, students' knowledge, verbal and physical violence (as a perpetrator and/or victim), risk-taking behaviors (weapon carrying, threatening behaviors), family violent status, watching movies, and accessibility of sport facilities.

Results:

The prevalence of verbal and physical violence in studied students was 45% and 33.3%, respectively. The prevalence of verbal and physical victimization was 45.8% and 23.6%, respectively. The prevalence of physical violence was higher in middle school students than high school students (P = 0.0001) and in boys was higher than in girls (P = 0.0001). Being boy, carried a weapon out of home or in school, victimization, feel unsafe at school, and violence in the family are the significant related risk factors with students violence (P < 0.05).

Conclusion:

The prevalence of students' violence in Iranian students is similar to the most of other developing countries, although, high rate violence and related risk factors emphasize the need for comprehensive and interventional prevention programs to reduce and manage student violence and associated risk behaviors.