NCJ Number
165093
Journal
Journal of Adolescence Volume: 18 Issue: 5 Dated: (October 1995) Pages: 579-592
Date Published
1995
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study examined social and psychological factors associated with the frequency of weapon-carrying by African- American adolescents living in a community where there is extensive poverty and a high level of violent crime.
Abstract
Using a cross-sectional anonymous survey design, adolescents (n=225, 44 percent males) ages 11 to 19 years living in or around nine HUD housing projects in Augusta, Ga., were administered an anonymous questionnaire. The dependent variables were the number of days that a weapon, such as a gun, knife, or club was carried in the previous 30 days and the frequency that a hidden weapon was carried in the last year. Carrying a weapon during the previous 30 days was significantly associated with previous exposure to violence and victimization, age, corporal punishment scale, depression, family conflict, purpose in life, and the self-appraised probability of being alive at age 25, and it was higher among males. Based on multiple regression analysis, previous exposure and victimization to violence, gender, age, and self-appraised probability of being alive at age 25 explained 17 percent of the variation in frequency of weapon-carrying. The exposure to violence and victimization scale, school grade, and probability of being alive at age 25 explained 12.1 percent of the variation in frequency of carrying a hidden weapon in the last year. The two indicators of weapon-carrying were not associated with family structure, religious behavior, or any other demographic variable. 4 tables and 48 references