Risk factors for community violence exposure in adolescence

Community violence is recognized a significant public health problem. However, only a paucity of research has examined risk factors for community violence exposure across do-mains relevant to adolescents or using longitudinal data. This study examined youth aggres-sive behavior in relation to community violence exposure among a community epidemiologi-cally defined sample of 582 (45 % female) urban adolescents. Internalizing behaviors, deviant peer affiliation, and parental monitoring were examined as moderators of the association between aggressive behavior and exposure to community violence. For males with aggres-sive behavior problems and deviant peer affiliation or low parental monitoring, co-occurring anxiety symptoms protected against subsequent witnessing community violence. In contrast, males with aggressive behavior problems and co-occurring depressive symptoms were at in-creased risk for witnessing community violence. Implications of the findings for preventive interventions and future research are discussed