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Abstract
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PURPOSE: To describe the frequency of violence-related behaviors and their association with other health behaviors among high school students. METHODS: The Youth Risk Behavior Survey was administered to all ninth and eleventh graders (n = 2075) of a school district in Texas. It provided information regarding violence-related behaviors and other health behaviors. Students were classified into four mutually exclusive, violence-related categories according to whether they were involved in a physical fight and/or carried a weapon. RESULTS: Overall, 20% of the students were involved in a physical fight but had not carried a weapon, 10% carried a weapon but had not been involved in a physical fight, and 17% had been involved in a physical fight and had carried a weapon. Prevalence of weapon-carrying and fighting were higher among males than females, and among ninth graders than eleventh graders. Among males, 48% had carried a weapon the month prior to the survey. Students who both fought and carried a weapon were 19 times more likely to drink alcohol six or more days than students who did not fight nor carried a weapon. Logistic regression analyses showed that drinking alcohol, number of sexual partners, and being in ninth grade were predictors of fighting. These three variables plus having a low self-perception of academic performance and suicidal thoughts were predictors of fighting and carrying a weapon. CONCLUSIONS: The data indicate that violence-related behaviors are frequent among high school students and that they are positively associated with certain health behaviors. Interventions designed to reduce violence should also address coexisting health-risk behaviors and target high-risk groups.
VioLit summary:
OBJECTIVE:
The goal of this study by Orpinas et al. was to describe the frequency of violence-related behaviors and their correlation with other health-risk behaviors among high school students.
METHODOLOGY:
The authors employed a quasi-experimental, cross-sectional survey design for this study. The authors distributed questionnaires to all ninth and eleventh grade students in a moderate size Texas school district. The number of students completing the questionnaire was 2,210. Of these 135 were excluded for unreliable or missing responses. The total number of students in the sample was 2,075 (72% of those completing questionnaires). No missing case analysis was conducted. To measure students' health related behaviors, the authors administered the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS). This survey was composed of several questions asking demographic information, several asking perception of academic performance, and 70 questions asking about health-risk behaviors such as smoking, using drugs, and drinking, as well as health-promoting behaviors such as diet and exercise. The researchers were concerned with identifying the prevalence of violent behaviors and their association with other health-risk behaviors. Because the authors employed a cross-sectional design, causal relationships between health-risk behaviors were not estimated. Simple descriptive analysis was used in conjunction with Mantel-Haenzel odds ratios (MOR) to estimate the frequency of violent behaviors. Logistic regression techniques were used to estimate the association between violence and other health-risk behaviors.
FINDINGS/DISCUSSION:
Researchers grouped respondents into four categories for analysis: had fights (in past 12 months), carried weapon (in past 30 days), had fights and carried a weapon, and did not fight or carry a weapon. Researchers found that 20% of respondents reported having been involved in fights in the past 12 months, 10% of respondents reported carrying a weapon in the past 30 days, and 17% of respondents reported that they had been involved in fights and carried a weapon. More ninth graders reported being in a fight than eleventh graders. Similarly, more ninth graders reported carrying a weapon than eleventh graders. One out of two males reported being in fights compared to only one out of four females. Forty eight percent of males reported carrying a weapon compared to 9% of females. Of those males 56% carried a knife or a razor. Twenty-five percent of males and 17% of females carried a firearm. Males also reported higher levels of other health-risk behaviors, such as the use of alcohol, tobacco, drugs, and high sexual activity, than females. The study also found that health-risk behaviors such as the use of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs increased with school grade. Results also showed that the frequency of health-risk behaviors varied by participation in fights and carrying a weapon. Individuals who had not fought or carried a weapon had the lowest frequency of health-risk behaviors while individuals who had done both had the highest frequency of health-risk behaviors. For example, males who either fought or carried a weapon were three times more likely to drink and to become inebriated. Males who fought and carried a weapon were nineteen times more likely to drink and fourteen times more likely to have drunken to inebriation. Other health-risk behaviors showed a similar, albeit much less severe, pattern across groups.
Results of the logistic analyses showed that when the level of other health-risk behaviors was controlled, drinking, the number of sexual partners, and school grade had a significant and positive association with carrying a weapon. Drinking was significantly as well as positively associated with fighting and thoughts of suicide and perception of low academic performance were significantly associated with fighting and carrying a weapon. Because school grade was significantly associated with fighting and fighting/carrying a weapon for males separate equations were estimated for both ninth and eleventh graders. Sexual activity was significantly and positively associated with fighting for ninth graders while drinking was positively associated with fighting for eleventh graders. Drinking, number of sexual partners, perception of academic performance, and thoughts of suicide were significantly and positively associated with fighting and carrying a weapon for ninth graders. Drinking and number of sexual partners was also significantly as well as positively associated with fighting and carrying a weapon.
Overall, health promoting behaviors were not associated with fighting and/or carrying a weapon. However, results showed that, for females, getting exercise and eating high fat foods were significantly and positively associated with fighting.
AUTHORS' RECOMMENDATIONS:
Based on their findings, the authors made several recommendations. First, the finding that many health-risk behaviors were interrelated suggested that comprehensive intervention programs would be more appropriate. The authors argued that programs that focus on reducing single behaviors, such as violence, would be less effective. Moreover, the authors recommended that such programs be designed and implemented before students reach high school. Lastly, the inability to find significant correlation between health-promoting behaviors and fighting and/or carrying a weapon was said to cast doubt on the likely effectiveness of programs that attempt to lessen health-risk behaviors by encouraging health-promoting behaviors.
EVALUATION:
As an exploratory data analysis, this study is a necessary and commendable first step in theory building and further empirical research on the relationship between violence and health among adolescents. There are several problems that limit its long term value in this regard, however. First, although the sample is quite large, the findings are not generalizable. Therefore, the results must be considered in the context of the sample's unique socioeconomic and geographic status. Second, the cross-sectional design prohibited the estimation of causal relationships between violence and health-related behaviors. Further research will have to pursue this issue. However, this research does succeed in what any good exploratory analysis should do, i.e., bring to light important empirical associations that deserve both theoretical attention and further research.
This study will have the most immediate value for practitioners. It adds one more piece of evidence that supports the implementation of comprehensive, multidimensional intervention strategies. In addition, this study provides evidence that supports intervention strategies that take effect before adolescents reach high school. However, given the generalizability and etiological difficulties mentioned above, these findings should be considered with caution.
(CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado)
Senior High School Student
Early Adolescence
Late Adolescence
Grade 9
Grade 10
Grade 11
Texas
Health Risk Behavior
Multiple Risk Behavior
Juvenile Offender
Juvenile Violence
At Risk Juvenile
At Risk Youth
Violence Incidence and Prevalence
Juvenile Behavior
Behavior Incidence and Prevalence
Fighting Behavior
Physical Assault Offender
Juvenile Weapons Carrying
Weapons Carrying Incidence and Prevalence
Juvenile Substance Use
Substance Use Incidence and Prevalence
Alcohol Use Incidence and Prevalence
Drug Use Incidence and Prevalence
Juvenile Sexual Behavior
Juvenile Sexual Activity
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