NCJ Number
138577
Date Published
1990
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Based on the view that violence in American society is essentially a public health problem, this paper advocates and describes the use of public health strategies to prevent and counter violent behavior, particularly among adolescents.
Abstract
Current criminal justice strategies are inapplicable to intimate, often unpremeditated violence between acquaintances and family members, which accounts for half of the homicides in the United States. Health care strategies that have modified and prevented unhealthful behaviors in other realms can also be effective in modifying violent behavior. Public health strategies aim at increasing understanding of and reducing risk factors. Multi- institutional and multi-disciplinary models that change knowledge, attitudes, and behavior are central to this approach. The Violence Prevention Project of the Health Promotion Program for Urban Youth (Boston Department of Health and Hospitals) is an effort to reduce the incidence of violent behavior and associated social and medical hazards for adolescents at the community level. Through outreach and education, this community-based primary prevention effort is endeavoring to change individual behavior and community attitudes about violence. The goals of a violence-prevention curriculum for use in high schools are outlined. 20 references