A community-level approach to violence prevention

Background: Prevention strategies to address the problem of family and

community violence are seldom targeted to Hispanic youth. Using methods of community-based participatory research (CBPR), we tested the impact of a ten-session program (El Joven Noble-JN) developed for at-risk youth based on Hispanic cultural values of respect for self and others.

Methods: Fourteen elementary schools were randomly assigned to intervention or comparison groups. A Community Coordinating Council provided direction in implementing the intervention in after-school programs of a predominantly Hispanic community. Instruments assessed attitudes about violence, gangs, cultural pride and values. Data was collected at pre, post and three months post intervention. Hierarchical random-effect models were applied to study the relationships between dependent and independent variables.

Results: Data from 153 third, fourth and fifth grade students in the intervention and 107 in the comparison group showed no statistically significant differences between groups over time; sub-group analysis showed intervention group students who had engaged in teasing, hitting or fighting on pre-test (N=36) had significantly greater positive change in scores on JN values (P=.05) and attitudes about violence (P=.01) scales than students in the comparison group (N=32).

Discussion: Lack of significant results between groups may reflect the inability of instruments to detect subtle effects, or the fact that most youth reported no violent behaviors or positive attitudes about violence. Demonstrating impact with all youth reflects measurement challenges in primary prevention interventions.