Department of Psychology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA.
J Youth Adolesc. 2013 Feb;42(2):250-62. doi: 10.1007/s10964-012-9895-z. Epub 2013 Jan 1.
African American adolescents are exposed disproportionately to community violence, increasing their risk for emotional and behavioral symptoms that can detract from learning and undermine academic outcomes. The present study examined whether aggressive behavior and depressive and anxious symptoms mediated the association between exposure to community violence and academic functioning, and if the indirect effects of community violence on academic functioning differed for boys and girls, in a community sample of urban African American adolescents (N = 491; 46.6 % female). Structural equation modeling was used to examine the indirect effect of exposure to community violence in grade 6 on grade 8 academic functioning. Results revealed that aggression in grade 7 mediated the association between grade 6 exposure to community violence and grade 8 academic functioning. There were no indirect effects through depressive and anxious symptoms, and gender did not moderate the indirect effect. Findings highlight the importance of targeting aggressive behavior for youth exposed to community violence to not only improve their behavioral adjustment but also their academic functioning. Implications for future research are discussed.
非裔美国青少年过多地接触社区暴力，这增加了他们出现情绪和行为症状的风险，这些症状会影响学习并破坏学业成绩。本研究考察了在城市非裔美国青少年的社区样本中（N = 491；46.6%为女性），接触社区暴力与学业功能之间的关联是否通过攻击行为以及抑郁和焦虑症状来体现，以及社区暴力对学业功能的间接影响是否因性别而异。结构方程模型被用来检验 6 年级时接触社区暴力对 8 年级学业功能的间接影响。结果表明，7 年级的攻击行为在 6 年级接触社区暴力与 8 年级学业功能之间起中介作用。通过抑郁和焦虑症状没有间接影响，而且性别没有调节间接效应。研究结果强调了针对接触社区暴力的青少年的攻击行为的重要性，这不仅可以改善他们的行为调整，还可以改善他们的学业功能。讨论了对未来研究的启示。
