Search Institute, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, USA.
J Community Psychol. 2023 Apr;51(3):1164-1180. doi: 10.1002/jcop.23008. Epub 2023 Jan 29.
This study identified promotive and protective factors that lessened the likelihood of handgun carriage in a sample of 141 predominantly Black (97%) young adults (ages 18-22) living in high burden communities experiencing elevated rates of violence. Participants completed surveys assessing overall risk and protective factors for violence across ecological contexts (e.g., individual/peer, family, school, and community). A series of regression and moderation analyses were conducted to ascertain direct (promotive) and indirect (protective) relations between factors across the ecological model and likelihood of gun carriage. Results indicated that (1) consistent with previous studies, both witnessing violence and violence victimization were significant risk factors for handgun carriage, (2) ethnic identity was a significant promotive factor related to a lower likelihood of handgun carriage, and (3) lack of family conflict, student status, and community assets were significant protective factors where higher levels of these factors attenuated the relation between exposure to community violence and likelihood of gun carriage. This is one of the first strengths-based studies examining factors that may mitigate the likelihood of gun carriage for young adults in high risk contexts. Our findings suggest that gun violence prevention efforts for high burden communities should support young adults by strengthening factors across the ecological model (e.g., individual, family, school, and community).
本研究确定了促进因素和保护因素，这些因素降低了在一个主要由黑人（97%）组成的 141 名年轻人（年龄在 18-22 岁）样本中携带手枪的可能性，这些年轻人生活在高负担社区，暴力发生率较高。参与者完成了调查，评估了暴力在生态背景下的总体风险和保护因素（例如个人/同伴、家庭、学校和社区）。进行了一系列回归和调节分析，以确定生态模型中各因素之间的直接（促进）和间接（保护）关系与携带枪支的可能性之间的关系。结果表明：(1) 与先前的研究一致，目睹暴力和成为暴力受害者都是携带手枪的重要风险因素，(2) 种族认同是与携带手枪可能性降低相关的重要促进因素，(3) 缺乏家庭冲突、学生身份和社区资产是重要的保护因素，这些因素的水平越高，就越能减轻接触社区暴力与携带枪支可能性之间的关系。这是第一个基于优势的研究之一，探讨了在高风险环境中可能降低年轻人携带枪支可能性的因素。我们的研究结果表明，针对高负担社区的枪支暴力预防工作应该通过加强生态模型中的因素来支持年轻人（例如个人、家庭、学校和社区）。
