Childhood and adolescent violent victimization and the risk of young adult intimate partner violence victimization

Using a nationally representative sample of participants, this study investigates childhood victimization in the home and adolescent violent victimization in the community on the risk of being a victim of intimate partner violence (IPV), general violence, or both during early adulthood. The study findings indicate being left home alone and being physically abused during childhood, and adolescent violent victimization in the community had strong independent effects on an individual's likelihood of becoming a victim of IPV, general violence, or both in early adulthood. The study findings suggest a consistent pattern of victimization across the life course, and intervention programs need to be developed that address the specific needs of children and adolescents at high risk for home and community violent victimization.     

Cyberbullying victimization and fatalism in adolescence: Resilience as a moderator

The present study used quantitative data to address two gaps in cyberbullying research. First, to examine the relationship between fatalism and cyberbullying victimization in an adolescent sample not previously explored. Second, despite investigating these relationships from a main effects perspective, the present study extended research by examining fatalism from an interaction effects perspective. Specifically, this study examined adolescents' resilience as a moderator of the relationship between cyberbullying victimization and fatalism. A total of 643 adolescents (M_age = 14.56; SD = 1.45) from grades 7 to 10 of compulsory education participated in this study. Cyberbullying was associated with higher levels of fatalism. The key finding was that resilience was a moderator of the relationship between cyberbullying victimization and fatalism. These findings emphasize the importance of the protective function of resilience in cyberbullying victimization outcomes.     

Cumulative victimization, psychological distress, and high-risk behavior among substance-involved women

This research addressed two questions: (a) What is the relationship between different patterns of cumulative victimization and psychological distress? And (b) How does the pattern of cumulative victimization and psychological distress influence women's engagement in substance- and sex-related risk behavior? Data were analyzed from interviews with 149 sexually active, crack-using women who completed a follow-up interview after participating in the Kentucky National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) AIDS Cooperative Agreement. Findings from the multivariate analyses indicated that victimization accounted for 5% and 39% of the variance in psychological distress and high-risk behavior, respectively; cumulative victimization and psychological distress accounted for 6% to 11% of the variance in the high-risk behaviors. Results highlight the affects of childhood and adult victimization on psychological distress and the associations between different types of psychological distress and risk behavior.     

The short- and long-term effects of adolescent violent victimization experienced within the family and community

Adolescents face high rates of victimization, yet little is known regarding the criminal consequences of these experiences. Using data from the National Youth Survey, this investigation compared the relative and combined effects of adolescent violent victimization perpetrated by family and nonfamily members on self-reported criminal offending from adolescence to early adulthood. The results demonstrate that both types of violence have an immediate and sustained impact on criminal involvement, although the effect is somewhat stronger for nonfamily victimization, and for both types, the relationship tends to weaken over time. In addition, those experiencing both types of victimization report a higher frequency of offending compared to those experiencing only one type. The findings indicate the need for prevention programs aimed at decreasing the prevalence of adolescent victimization, as well as intervention efforts to help victims from becoming offenders.     

Correlates of violent and nonviolent victimization in a sample of public high school students

This study investigates the extent to which student reports of violent and nonviolent victimization in public high schools is associated the presence of hate-related words or symbols, the availability of hard and soft drugs, and the presence of gangs. Data from the 1999 School Crime Supplement of the National Crime Victimization Survey were used for this analysis. In the final multinomial logistic regression model, the presence of hate-related words, the availability of hard drugs, and a gang presence were significantly associated with reports of violent victimization. The availability of soft drugs was significantly associated with nonviolent victimization. Findings held across gender, race/ethnicity, and urbanicity of the school's location with younger students more likely to be both violently and nonviolently victimized than older students. Implications for primary and secondary interventions aimed at school climate and the reduction of correlates of victimization are discussed.     

Testing a path model of relationships between gender,age, and bullying victimization and violent behavior,substance abuse,depression, suicidal ideation,and suicide attempts in adolescents

The goal of this study was to test a path model for the relationships between age, gender, traditional bullying and cyberbullying victimization, and violent behavior, substance abuse, depression, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in adolescents. A hypothesized path model was fit to data from the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) on a nationally representative sample of 15,425 high-school students from across the United States. Results suggested that the effects of traditional and cyberbullying victimization on suicidal thinking, suicide planning, and suicide attempts were mediated by violent behavior, substance abuse, and depression. Results also suggested reciprocal paths between substance abuse and violent behavior. There were statistically significant indirect paths from both traditional and cyberbullying victimization to suicide attempts without the involvement of depression, suicidal thinking, or suicide planning, findings suggesting a model for spontaneous, unplanned adolescent suicides. Results suggested that female adolescents who reported cyberbullying victimization also reported higher rates of depression and suicidal behaviors compared to their male counterparts, and that as adolescents got older, depression and substance abuse tended to increase, while violent behavior and suicidal thinking tended to decrease. The implications of these findings for social workers, school counselors, and others who work with adolescents are considered.     

Impaired sensory-emotional integration in a violent adolescent sex offender

Social risk factors, executive neuropsychological functioning, and emotional numbing were examined as potential risk factors for violent sexual assaults by an adolescent male. The subject had been exposed to at least four previously identified social risk factors, including neglect, early separation from both parents, sexual abuse, and low socioeconomic status. At the time of assessment, executive neuropsychological functioning was intact. At the time of assessment, executive neuropsychological functioning was intact. While impaired emotional responsiveness was an important factor in the assaults, the construct of emotional numbing is too broad to identify the specific neuropsychological impairment involved in the subject's assault behavior. The authors suggest that failures in sensory-emotional integration contributed to the likelihood of violent behavior. Implications for further research and clinical practice are discussed.     

Coping with victimization in heterosexual and sexual minority university students

This study examined perceived social support available to victims of traditional and cyber forms of bullying in a heterosexual and sexual minority emerging adult university student population. Questionnaires were completed by 521 students ages 18 to 25 years old. The questions related to their sexuality, experience of bullying, and perception of social support. Perceived social support was lower for sexual minority individuals than for heterosexual individuals only when no bullying behavior was present. No significant differences in perceived social support between sexual minority and heterosexual individuals were found when they were traditionally bullied, cyberbullied, or experienced both forms of bullying victimization. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

Child maltreatment, revictimization, and violent behavior

The study investigates the cumulative impact of child maltreatment and victimization in adolescence on violent behavior in young adulthood in a nonclinical high-risk sample. The sample consists of 1,526 incarcerated young men (14 to 24 years) who were interviewed with standardized instruments during their prison term. Violent and nonviolent offenders with and without repeated victimization experiences throughout the life cycle were compared. Results show that child maltreatment doubles the risk for violent victimization in adolescence. Repeated victimization experiences in adolescence heighten the risk for later violent offending. This is the case for officially registered violence and self-reported violent behavior. In addition, child maltreatment increased the probability of self-reported violence as well. However, the interaction effect of victimization in childhood and victimization in early adolescence counteracted the main effects. Being repeatedly victimized throughout the early life cycle slightly reduced the probability of being a frequent offender.     

Parenting in poverty: Perspectives of high-risk parents

Parents considered high risk by child protection services commonly are striving to raise children in poverty but are identified as requiring improved parenting skills. Parent perceptions of their own needs are typically not sought or elicited. This longitudinal study of 35 parents over 18 months garnered 115 in-depth interviews focusing on parent views regarding barriers to effective parenting. Analysis indicated that parents uniformly identified poverty as the primary barrier to their capacity to provide adequate care for their children. Themes elicited indicated that financially parents were living precariously close to margins of defeat. Parents accepted personal responsibility for their economic and parental failings, equating no income with bad parenting. Depression and despair associated with poverty were acknowledged to impair parenting and increase self-doubt about parenting capacity. Experiences with social services generally led to low expectations of parenting assistance. The need for improved aid for impoverished parents is discussed.     

Experimental avoidance as a mediator of the effects of adolescent sexual victimization on negative adult outcomes

The study examined experiential avoidance as a mediator between sexual victimization and negative adult outcomes. Baron and Kenny's (1986) regression analyses were performed on a sample of 304 undergraduate women to assess direct and indirect effects of sexual victimization on depressive, psychological distress, and alcohol abuse symptoms. Experiential avoidance accounted for statistically significant, but modest effects of victimization on depressive and distress symptoms. Child sexual abuse was not directly associated with experiential avoidance or negative outcomes, but increased vulnerability for adolescent sexual victimization. Adolescent sexual victimization contributed to increased experiential avoidance, which was associated with greater negative outcomes. These results uniquely contribute to the existing literature linking experiential avoidance to psychological problems.     

Parenting,emotion regulation,and externalizing symptomatology as adolescent antecedents to young adult health risk behaviors

This study used longitudinal data to elucidate how trajectories of negative parenting across adolescence are associated with young adult health risk behaviors (HRBs) by testing difficulties with emotion regulation and externalizing symptomatology as sequential underlying mediators. The sample included 167 adolescents (53% males, M_age = 14 at Time 1 and M_age = 18 at Time 5) who were assessed five times. Adolescents self-reported on negative parenting, emotion regulation, externalizing symptomatology, and engagement in HRBs. Results suggest that increasingly negative parenting across adolescence has adverse consequences for emotion regulation development and in turn, externalizing symptomatology, which confers risk for young adult HRBs. Results offer insights towards mechanisms for prevention and intervention and public health policy aimed at reducing the prevalence and consequences of engagement in HRBs.     

Parenting Gains in Head Start as a Function of Initial Parenting Skill

Using data from the Head Start Impact Study (n = 3,696), this article examines whether one year of Head Start differentially benefited parents as a function of their initial parenting behaviors. Four outcomes are examined, namely, parents' rates of engaging in cognitive stimulation, reading to their child, and spanking, as well as their depressive symptoms. In general, most parents demonstrated improvements in their reading practices and cognitive stimulation regardless of their parenting behaviors at baseline. However, depressive symptoms and spanking behavior showed improvements only among parents who began the Head Start program with the most depressive symptoms and the most frequent spanking, respectively. These findings suggest that treatment‐induced changes in parenting can vary by parents' incoming attributes and that heterogeneity of effects should be considered. Implications for Head Start and other parenting interventions are discussed.     

Putting youth violent victimization into context: sex, race/ethnicity, and community differences among a multisite sample of youths

The increased risk of violent victimization for adolescents relative to other age groups has recently become a major public health concern. The current study uses data from a multisite study of eighth grade youths attending public schools in 11 cities to determine the extent and nature of youth general and serious violent victimization among both sexes and five racial/ethnic groups in 11 diverse communities. This study explores differences in sex, race/ethnicity, and community independently and explores interactions between sex and community and race/ethnicity and community. Our findings suggest important differences in victimization prevalence and individual victimization rates by sex and community of residence. Racial differences were found to be closely tied to community. Policy implications resulting from our findings are discussed.     

The effects of a high-risk environment on the sexual victimization of homeless and runaway youth

Based on the structural-choice theory of victimization, the current study examines the effects of a high-risk environment on the sexual victimization of 311 homeless and runaway youth. Results from logistic regression revealed that survival sex, gender, and physical appearance were significantly associated with sexual victimization. Results from a series of interactions also revealed that the effects of deviant behaviors on sexual victimization varied by gender and age. Although males and females engaged in similar activities, young women were more likely to be victims of sexual assault. These findings suggest that engaging in high-risk behaviors predispose some people to greater risks but it is the combination of these behaviors with gender and/or age that determines who will become victimized.     

Routine inequality: violent victimization at the intersection of race and ethnicity among females

Criminological research has clearly demonstrated that the risk of violent victimization varies across gender. More complex are the differences across race and ethnicity within gender groups. Past studies have established that victimization rates among Black females exceed those of White and Latina females. Although this pattern has been established, the reason for these differences between females must continue to be explored. We draw on situational and contextual features of routine activities and lifestyle theories to examine their use in accounting for these variations across race and ethnicity among females. The results indicate that the divergent impact of routine activities and lifestyle measures on females' risks for violent victimization. For example, some situational (e.g., riding public transportation) and contextual (e.g., residential stability) measures increased the risks of violent victimization among females of color but decreased among White females. The implications of these findings and areas of consideration for further research are discussed.     

Direct and vicarious violent victimization and juvenile delinquency: an application of general strain theory

Using a national probability sample of adolescents (12–17), this study applies general strain theory to how violent victimization, vicarious violent victimization, and dual violent victimization affect juvenile violent/property crime and drug use. In addition, the mediating effect and moderating effect of depression, low social control, and delinquent peer association on the victimization–delinquency relationship is also examined. Based on SEM analyses and contingency tables, the results indicate that all three types of violent victimization have significant and positive direct effects on violent/property crime and drug use. In addition, the expected mediating effects and moderating effects are also found. Limitations and future directions are discussed.     

Attitudes affecting physical dating violence perpetration and victimization: findings from adolescents in a high-risk urban community

This study examines the associations between attitudes supporting physical dating violence against boys hitting girls and girls hitting boys and experiences with physical dating violence perpetration and victimization among youth in a high-risk community. Cross-sectional logistic regression analyses are based on data from the Youth Violence Survey, conducted in 2004, and administered to more than 80% of public school students in grades 7, 9, 11, and 12 (N = 4,131) in an urban school district. Findings show that attitudes supporting physical dating violence against boys and girls are significantly associated with physical dating violence perpetration and victimization. Prevention programs that seek to reduce physical dating violence among adolescents may benefit from including sex-specific attitude modification as part of a comprehensive violence prevention approach.