Citation

Butters J, Harrison L, Korf DJ, Brochu S, Erickson PG. Vict. Offender 2011; 6(4): 341-355.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/15564886.2011.607392

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Concerns over youth violence and victimization are widespread, but it is rare that national trends can be compared with identical methods. This paper provides a cross-national examination of internalized, externalized, and help-seeking responses to weapon-related victimization among 1,398 at-risk male and female youth between the ages of 14 and 17 in Toronto, Montreal, Philadelphia, and Amsterdam. Analyses were conducted of seven potential responses to weapon-related victimization. Striking similarities in trends were observed: becoming more aggressive, becoming more afraid or cautious, starting to carry a weapon, and increasing feelings of depression were predominant responses in each city. However, clear patterns emerged that showed fewer Amsterdam youth reported these reactions--while more youth in Toronto were affected. Logistic regression revealed a strong impact of site and previous weapon-related violence on youths' responses to violence. We conclude with a discussion of challenges that emerged in the process of conducting a cross-national project and analyzing youth victimization in three countries.

Language: en

Keywords

at-risk youth; cross-national; response to violence