Violence Prevention and Yong Adolescents' Participation in Community Youth Service

• NCJ Number: 178642
• Journal: Journal of Adolescent Health Volume: 24 Issue: 1 Dated: January 1999 Pages: 28-37
• Author(s): Lydia O'Donnell; Ann Stueve; Alexi San Doval; Richard Duran; Rebecca Atnafou; Deborah Haber; Norma Johnson; Helen Murray; Uda Grant; Gregory Juhn; Julia Tang; Judith Bass; Patricia Piessens
• Date Published: January 1999
• Length: 10 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined whether participation in a school- sponsored community youth service program reduced self-reported violent behaviors among young urban adolescents.

Abstract

A total of 972 seventh-grade and eighth-grade students at two large, urban public middle schools were surveyed at baseline and at 6-month follow-up. One school was assigned to interventions and the other served as a control. All students at the intervention school received the Reach for Health classroom curriculum that included a 10-lesson unit focusing on violence prevention. In addition, approximately half the students were randomly assigned by classroom to participate in the Reach for Health Community Youth Service program (CYS). Under the guidance of teachers and community nurses, these students spent several hours each week providing service in local health care agencies. Regression analyses were used to assess the influence of treatment condition on violent-behavior outcomes. In the comparison of students in the curriculum-only and curriculum-plus CYS interventions to the control group, there was a statistically significant interaction among grade, CYS participation, and violence at follow-up. Eighth-grade CYS students reported significantly less violence at follow-up than students in the control school, taking into account baseline level of risk behavior, gender, ethnicity, and social desirability. There was no significant difference between controls and students in the curriculum-only conditions. A comparison of students in the CYS intervention to the curriculum-only condition within the intervention school found that the grade by intervention interaction was again significant. Eighth-grade CYS students, who received the broadest CYS experience, reported less violence at follow-up than their curriculum-only counterparts. The study concluded that, when delivered with sufficient intensity, school programs that couple community service with classroom health instruction can have a measurable impact on violent behaviors of a population of young adolescents at high risk for being both perpetrator and victim of peer violence. Community service programs may thus be an effective supplement to curricular interventions and a valuable part of multicomponent violence prevention programs. 3 tables and 46 references