Clinical epidemiology of urban violence: responding to children exposed to violence in ten communities.

This study explores the clinical epidemiology of children's exposure to violence as addressed by a program in which mental health clinicians work with law-enforcement agents in 10 U.S. cities. Data were collected on all participants contacted by the Child Development Community Policing Program (N = 7,313 individuals involved in 2,466 community incidents). Multivariate regression was used to examine sociodemographic and clinical correlates of the role of participants (victim, offender, or witness), location, and type of incident. The majority of incidents occurred in participants' homes. Adolescents were at a higher risk than children of being: (a) victimized, (b) involved in incidents outside their home, (c) experiencing a threat to their lives, and (d) suffering physical injuries. Males were more likely to be offenders than females, and to be subjected to physical injuries or involved in incidents that imposed a threat to their life. Females were significantly more likely to be victimized.