The purpose of this study was to develop a demographic profile of rural adolescents at risk of violence and identify characteristics, attitudes, and norms that may assist the conceptualization of violence prevention programs. A sample of 1493 females (n=881) and males (n=612) ranging in age from 14-16 responded to the Alabama Adolescent Survey (2001). Dependent measures included items on being a victim of violence or a perpetrator of violence with other variables of interest including violent intentions, attitudes towards violence, and parental measures consisting of student perceptions of parental interest, parental caring, parental knowledge of student whereabouts, and parent established curfews. Analyses consisted of establishing four groups for comparison purposes: a non-violence group, perpetrator only group, victim only group, and a group where the student was both a victim and perpetrator of violence. Demographic analysis of the groups showed that gender was a differentiating factor with the majority of the perpetrators being male (n=136, 64%) and victims being female (n=129, 72%). Analyses were therefore conducted separately for males and females. Consistent patterns among the study variables were apparent (p>.05) for both males and females. The non-violence group consistently held fewer intentions to participate in violent acts, had more negative attitudes toward violence and had greater parental supervision. Interestingly, there was minimal difference between the measures on comparisons between perpetrators, victims and the combined group. Results of this study show that perpetrators, victims, and those who classify as both, differ from those not involved in violence with regard to their violence attitudes, intentions, and parental supervision. Implications for program development include the targeting of violence intentions and attitudes as part of a structured intervention. If programs are tailored, planners should recognize that victims of violence tend to share common characteristics with perpetrators of violence and planners should anticipate that a number of victims will become perpetrators. Furthermore, a comprehensive program should also target parents and encourage greater parent supervision of adolescents.
Learning Objectives: 1. By the end of this session the learner will understand the relationship between violence participation and violent attitudes and intentions. 2. By the end of this session the learner will recognize the role of parental interest and care in the child’s participation in violence. 3. By the end of this session the learner will identify appropriate sub-grouping measures for violence prevention interventions.