Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Spring 4-30-2016
Keywords
Clark University, Mosakowski Institute, Community violence assessment, practitioner-academic partnership, early childhood trauma, action research
Abstract
Problem analysis conducted by a university-based research partner can provide communities with data-driven options to address the local drivers of serious youth and gang violence. Situated in Worcester, Massachusetts, this article describes how after early childhood trauma was identified as a potential driver of adolescent and young adult violence, problem analysis using local data confirmed that being the victim or witness of a traumatic incident before the age of 12 was significantly correlated with involvement in violence in adolescence or young adulthood. While there is a robust literature on the relationship between early childhood trauma and later delinquency, local decision-makers did not consider this knowledge actionable until the research partner used the city’s own police records to demonstrate the extent of the problem in the city. Rigorous problem analysis, conducted collaboratively between practitioners and an academic research partner, helped to compel local change and ensured that strategies addressed the right risk factors and directed service to the appropriate target population.
Recommended Citation
Ross, Laurie PhD; Arsenault, Samantha; and Lopez, Sergeant Miguel, "Problem Analysis in Community Violence Assessments: Reavealing Early Childhood Trauma as a Driver of Youth and Gang Violence" (2016). Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise. 69.
https://commons.clarku.edu/mosakowskiinstitute/69
Worcester
Yes
Included in
Applied Behavior Analysis Commons, Child Psychology Commons, Communication Commons, Community-Based Learning Commons, Community-Based Research Commons, Counseling Psychology Commons, Criminology Commons, Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons, Demography, Population, and Ecology Commons, Domestic and Intimate Partner Violence Commons, Educational Sociology Commons, Experimental Analysis of Behavior Commons, Family, Life Course, and Society Commons, Place and Environment Commons, Politics and Social Change Commons, Social Control, Law, Crime, and Deviance Commons, Social Psychology Commons, Social Psychology and Interaction Commons, Social Statistics Commons, Social Work Commons, Sociology of Culture Commons, Urban Studies Commons, Work, Economy and Organizations Commons