10 June 2005

Witnessing gun violence
leads to violent conduct in adolescents.

An important study that tracked adolescents in Chicago for more than five years found that those who witnessed gun violence were later more than twice as likely to carry a gun, use a gun, or participate in gang violence.   It underscores the need to protect children from exposure to violence, and to intervene with children who have witnessed firearm violence.

The study is important to us because we lead Cuyahoga County’s efforts to prevent the development of violent conduct in children exposed to violence.   MHS is the lead provider for the Children Who Witness Violence (CWWV) program that was established by the Cuyahoga County Board of Commissioners in 1999 to address the impact that domestic violence has on children and families. MHS is also a participating treatment center of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Last year, MHS provided child trauma services for more than 1,000 children who had been referred by police officers from scenes of domestic violence or other violence in the community.

Researchers analyzed data from a longitudinal study of children and young adults of 80 neighborhoods of Chicago, Illinois. Parents or guardians of 1,517 children agreed to participate. Half the children were within six months of their 12th birthday, and half were within six months of their 15th birthday. About 45% of children in the original sample were Latino; 37% were African-American; 14% were White, and 4% were of other races or ethnicities. Forty three percent lived alone with a single parent or guardian; 24% lived in families with two, three, or four other children or adults; and 33% lived in families with five or six others.

Firearm Violence Exposure and Serious Violent Behavior. Jeffrey B. Bingenheimer, Robert T. Brennan, Felton J. Earls.
Science, Vol. 308, Issue 5726, 1323-1326 , 27 May 2005.

Parents and children were interviewed three times from late 1994 to January 2002. The median interval between the first and second interviews was 2 years; between the second and third interviews, it was 2.5 years. The children were assessed with some of the same protocols used by staff members of the MHS Children Who Witness Violence program. The second interview identified children who had witnessed someone use a gun to threaten or harm someone. The third interview identified children who reported being violent during the preceding 12 months. Violent conduct was defined as having carried a concealed weapon, attacked someone with a weapon, shot someone or at someone, or participated in a gang fight in which someone was threatened or harmed. Researchers assured children that their responses were confidential, and explained that a Federal Certificate of Confidentiality made it illegal for researchers to disclose responses to anyone, including parents or law enforcement officers.

Of the 978 children who participated in the third (and earlier) interviews and assessments, 122 (12%) reported violent conduct during the prior year. One hundred nine said they carried a concealed weapon; 46 were in a gang fight; 31 attacked someone with a weapon; 15 shot at someone; and 6 said they shot someone. Children who described experiences of witnessing gun violence in the second interview were more than twice as likely to report violent conduct in the third interview.

The study results are convincing, because researchers used a sophisticated study design and careful statistical checks to make sure of the cause-and-effect relationship between early exposure to gun violence, and later violent conduct. The study results are also disturbing, because they show that children who witness violent events are profoundly and adversely influenced by these experiences.

However, researchers have developed treatment protocols designed to minimize the impact of a child’s exposure to violence. Staff members of the MHS Children Who Witness Violence program are using these protocols, and are participating in a national study of their effectiveness.

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Copyright (c) 2005
Mental Health Services for Homeless Persons, Inc. (MHS)
All Rights Reserved.
MHS, 1736 Superior Avenue East, Cleveland, Ohio 44114-2944 U.S.A.
Voice - 216-623-6555 / TDD - 216-623-6540

Julie Rittenhouse, President, Board of Trustees
Steven M. Friedman, Ph.D., Executive Director

MHS is a contract agency of the Cuyahoga County Community Mental Health Board, and a partner agency of United Way Services. The MHS website is at http://www.mhs-inc.org