NCJ Number: 217397
Title: Adolescents, Neighborhoods, and Violence: Recent Findings From the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods
Series: NIJ Research in Brief
Author(s): Akiva Liberman Ph.D.
Date Published: September 2007
Page Count: 24
Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Justice (NIJ)
Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/NCJRS
Document: PDF
Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
Format: Document (Online)
Language: English
Country: United States of America
Annotation: This report summarizes findings from four published papers using the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) longitudinal study to address questions about adolescent violence.
Abstract: In responding to four questions: (1) why are some adolescents more violent than others; (2) why are some neighborhoods more violent than others; (3) how do disadvantaged neighborhoods affect the development of resident youth; and (4) what is the relationship between violent neighborhoods and violent teens, researchers found that neighborhood conditions and social processes played an important role in influencing adolescent violence, beyond the attributes of individuals in those neighborhoods. This general conclusion relates to illegal firearms carrying, exposure to firearms violence, the observed racial and ethnic differences in offending, and the relationship between early puberty and violent behavior in girls. None of these findings on neighborhood influences contradict the many strong findings about the effects of individual, family, and peer factors in producing violence. The studies reviewed report many such effects, including the role of married parents, youth impulsiveness, individual experiences with violence and victimization, and association with deviant peers. The Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) was designed to investigate the development of crime and violence in children and adolescents. The PHDCN combines a longitudinal study of more than 6,000 Chicago children and adolescents with a study of Chicago neighborhoods. The longitudinal study involved interviews with children, adolescents, and primary caregivers conducted form 1995 through 2001. This report summarizes findings on violence from four recently published scientific articles. Each article used the multilevel design, drawing on data from both the neighborhood and youth studies. References and appendix
Main Term(s): Violent juvenile offenders
Index Term(s): Adolescent females; Adolescent males; Adolescents at risk; Environmental influences; Home environment; Juvenile delinquency factors; Juvenile/community relations; Poverty and crime; Socioeconomic causes of delinquency; Violence; Violence causes; Violence prediction
Note: Downloaded on September 25, 2007.
To cite this abstract, use the following link: http://www.ncjrs.gov/App/publications/abstract.aspx?ID=239032
. A title search of 
