MCH Library Knowledge Path: Adolescent Violence Prevention

Adolescent Violence Prevention
Knowledge Path

Knowledge Path Table of Contents

Introduction

Overview

General Resources for Professionals

Websites
Additional Electronic Publications
Databases: Data, Literature and Research, and Programs
News and Commentary

Resources for Families

Resources for Schools

Resources on Specific Aspects of Adolescent Violence

Firearms
Gangs
Media Violence
Violent Crime Victims

Related MCH Library Resources

Please provide feedback on this knowledge path.

Introduction

This knowledge path about adolescent violence prevention has been compiled by the MCH Library at Georgetown University. The volume of materials on this topic is vast and covers many disciplines, including public health, medicine, criminal justice, education, and social services. This path offers a selection of current, high-quality resources from these disciplines that measure, document, and monitor the problem; identify risk and protective factors; and report on promising intervention strategies. Separate sections identify resources on specific aspects of adolescent violence: bullying, dating violence, family violence, firearms, gangs, media violence, school violence, suicide, and violent-crime victimization. This knowledge path is aimed at health and social services professionals, educators, policymakers, community activists, and families, and it will be updated periodically.

Overview

See Understanding Youth Violence (2009) by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This fact sheet describes the problem of adolescent violence in the United States and outlines its occurrence and consequences, the groups at risk, and prevention strategies. Also see Youth Violence: Facts at a Glance (2009), which presents data about youth violence and violence-related behaviors, health disparities among victims of violence, non-fatal injuries due to violence, school violence, bullying, and juvenile arrests.

General Resources for Professionals

Websites

American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): Violence Prevention. Policy statements and patient-education materials on topics such as bullying and firearms. Resources and initiatives include

Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure. Information about this program to integrate violence prevention efforts in pediatric practices and the community. Includes a clinical guide and brochures for parents, children, and adolescents on topics such as bullying, discipline, interpersonal skills, and television violence.

Role of the Pediatrician in Youth Violence Prevention. (2009). [Policy statement].

Also see the ASK Campaign (Asking Saves Kids).
Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV). Program information, publications, and databases to assist with the development and evaluation of effective violence prevention programs. Topics include school violence, bullying, gangs, and firearms. CSPV is a research center at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Resources and initiatives include

Blueprints for Violence Prevention. Information and materials about model programs that have been effective in reducing adolescent violent crime, aggression, delinquency, and substance use.

Also see Safe Communities~Safe Schools (SCSS).
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Information and resources about preventing adolescent violence in schools, homes, and communities. Resources and initiatives include

Guide to Community Preventive Services: Violence Prevention Focused on Children and Youth. Recommendations for population-based interventions to reduce or prevent violence by and against children and adolescents. Addresses early childhood home visitation, firearm laws, reducing psychological harm from traumatic events, school-based violence prevention programs, therapeutic foster care, and youth transfer to adult criminal courts.

Mortality Among Teenagers Aged 12–19 Years: United States, 1999–2006. (2010). This data brief indicates that almost 75 percent of all adolescent deaths are attributable to unintentional and violence-related injuries and are considered preventable.

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC): Youth Violence. Program information, data, assessment tools, definitions, and resources that describe risk and protective factors, consequences, prevention strategies, and the translation of research into practice. Recent resources and initiatives include
- Evaluation for Improvement: A Seven-Step Empowerment Evaluation Approach for Violence Prevention Organizations. (2010). [Manual].
  
  National Academic Centers of Excellence (ACE) on Youth Violence Prevention. Information about 10 university-based research centers that are collaborating with local communities and community-based organizations to develop, implement, and evaluate promising adolescent violence prevention efforts.
  
  National Strategy to Prevent Youth Violence. (2009). [Fact sheet].
- STRYVE: Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere. Tools to plan, implement, and evaluate sustainable adolescent-violence-prevention strategies that are based upon the best available evidence. Includes online training modules, data, research documents, educational materials, policies, program information, practice guidelines, and news. Also presents databases of adolescent-violence-prevention materials and organizations.
Also see CDC's Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS), school violence resources, and the Prevention Research Centers (PRC).
Children's Safety Network (CSN): Youth Violence Prevention. Publications, presentations, and links to additional resources about adolescent violence prevention, including bullying and school violence prevention. CSN provides information, training, and assistance to the maternal and child health (MCH) community to reduce child and adolescent injuries and violence. A recent publication is

Weaving a Safety Net: Integrating Injury and Violence Prevention into Maternal and Child Health Programs. (2009). [Report].
Fight Crime: Invest in Kids. Program information, legislative news, and publications about crime-prevention topics, including early education and care, child abuse and neglect prevention, after-school programs, and programs that help troubled adolescents get back on track. Fight Crime: Invest in Kids is a national anti-crime organization of law-enforcement leaders and violence survivors. Recent publications include

After-School Programs Prevent Crime. (2009). [Fact sheet].

From America's Front Line Against Crime: Proven Investments in Kids Will Prevent Crime and Violence. (2009). [Issue brief].

Interventions for Juvenile Offenders Prevent Crime. (2009). [Fact sheet].

Invest in Early Education Now, Spend Less on Prison Later. (2009). [Report, Issue brief].
FindYouthInfo.gov. Program and funding information and resources to help youth-serving organizations and community partnerships plan, implement, and participate in effective programs for youth. FindYouthInfo.gov was created by the Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs, which is composed of representatives from 12 federal agencies that support programs and services focusing on youth. See the FindYouthInfo.gov directory of evidence-based programs.
Girls Study Group. Research bulletins, presentations, and background materials about female juvenile delinquency and violence. The Girls Study Group is funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Recent bulletins include

Causes and Correlates of Girls' Delinquency. (2010).

Resilient Girls: Factors That Protect Against Delinquency. (2009).
Healthy People 2020. Information about this national health-promotion and disease-prevention initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services. View the overview, objectives, and recommended interventions and resources for adolescent health, including adolescent violence prevention.
Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA): Youth Violence. Electronic clearinghouse of links to published research, curricula and other educational material, and organizations. Bullying, school violence, gangs, and media violence are some of the topics addressed. MINCAVA is located at the University of Minnesota School of Social Work.
National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC). Fact sheets, policy briefs, reports, and other materials about adolescent health on topics that include positive youth development and violence. NAHIC is based at the University of California, San Francisco.

Also see NAHIC's Data Project to Improve Adolescent and Young Adult Health.
National Technical Assistance Center for Children's Mental Health. Program and conference information and other resources about reforming services and building systems of care for children and adolescents who have, or are at risk for, mental health challenges and their families. Offers a matrix of over 50 programs across the country that focus on Asian American/Pacific Islander adolescent development and violence prevention. Presents a set of briefs that describe the work and successes of 29 coalitions for adolescent violence prevention. Also offers a monthly webinar series that covers important and emerging trends in mental health. The center is part of the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development (GUCCHD).
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Program, conference, and funding information; statistics; state contact lists; and publications, including electronic newsletters. Topics include girls' delinquency and gang violence prevention. OJJDP is part of the Department of Justice (DOJ). Resources include

Socioeconomic Mapping and Resource Topography (SMART) System. A free, web-based geographic information system that communities can use to upload local maps of crime locations and connect them to maps of local intervention programs and community resources. See Get SMART—Mapping Resources for Crime and Delinquency Prevention (2010) for an overview of SMART.

Statistical Briefing Book (SBB). Statistics about juvenile crime and victimization and about youth involved in the juvenile justice system.

Also see the National Gang Center (NGC).
Prevention Institute. Program information, policy research and analysis, publications, presentations, and other materials about violence prevention. The Prevention Institute is a national, non-profit organization that promotes policies, organizational practices, and collaborative efforts to improve health and quality of life. Recent initiatives and publications include

Moving from Them to Us: Challenges in Reframing Violence Among Youth. (2009). [Paper].

Preventing Violence: A Primer. (2009).

Public Health Approach to Preventing Violence: FAQ. (2009). [Issue brief].

Urban Networks to Increase Thriving Youth (UNITY) Through Violence Prevention. Background information, program materials, assessment and planning tools, and a webinar training series about this program to strengthen and support cities' violence prevention efforts. UNITY is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Public/Private Ventures (P/PV). Information about effective programs and reports aimed at reducing crime and violence, promoting the successful reentry of formerly incarcerated adults, and helping high-risk adolescents avoid deeper involvement with the criminal justice system. Other programs address mentoring, out-of-school time, and in-school initiatives. P/PV is a national nonprofit organization focused on creating and strengthening programs that improve lives in low-income communities.
RESOURCE Project. Education tools for faculty from a variety of disciplines to use in enhancing the adolescent-health training of public health students. Includes a 12-unit adolescent-health curriculum on topics such as adolescent development, mental health and suicide, violence, school interventions, and community interventions. The project is a collaborative effort spearheaded by the Public Policy Analysis and Education Center for Middle Childhood, Adolescent and Young Adult Health.
Youth Alive! Program information and program replication materials for initiatives to prevent adolescent violence and develop adolescent leadership in California communities. Youth ALIVE! provides training to adolescents to build their leadership skills and support them in advocating for solutions to violence for themselves and their communities.

Additional Electronic Publications

Fox HB, McManus MA, Arnold KN. 2010. Significant Multiple Risk Behaviors Among U.S. High School Students. Washington, DC: National Alliance to Advance Adolescent Health. This fact sheet describes the multiple health risk behaviors among high school students, including behaviors that contribute to violence. It reports on the prevalence and co-occurrence of these health risk behaviors; examines differences by gender, race and ethnicity, and grade level; and considers implications for preventive interventions.
Greenwood P. 2010. Preventing and Reducing Youth Crime and Violence: Using Evidence-Based Practices. Sacramento, CA: Governor's Office of Gang and Youth Violence Policy. This paper describes an examination of evidence-based programs and strategies, which if implemented correctly, reliably and significantly reduce juvenile crime and violence. The appendix contains a list of the programs and strategies that are most likely to prevent and reduce youth crime and violence and several programs and strategies that do not work.
Kaba M, Mathew JC, Haines N, eds. 2010. Something Is Wrong: Exploring the Roots of Youth Violence. Chicago, IL: Project NIA, Chicago Freedom School, and Teachers for Social Justice. This curriculum aims to guide adolescents and their adult allies to analyze the root causes of youth violence and create local solutions.
Krisberg B, Hartney C, Wolf A, Silva F. 2009. Youth Violence Myths and Realities: A Tale of Three Cities. Oakland, CA: National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD). This report presents findings and recommendations from a study to assess the intersections of media coverage of youth crime, public policy, and true trends and issues in youth crime in three U.S. cities.
MacDonald J, Bluthenthal RN, Golinelli D, Kofner A, Stokes RJ, Sehgal A, Fain T, Beletsky L. 2009. Neighborhood Effects on Crime and Youth Violence: The Role of Business Improvement Districts in Los Angeles. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation. This report examines the impact of business improvement districts (BIDs) on crime and youth violence in Los Angeles.
Office of Applied Studies (OAS). 2009. Violent Behaviors Among Adolescent Females. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). This report presents data about the prevalence of three types of violent behavior among girls ages 12–17.
Office of the Surgeon General. 2001. Youth Violence: A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). This report examines the magnitude, causes, and prevention of adolescent violence from a public health perspective.
RAND Corporation, PolicyLink, Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice, Center for Nonviolence and Social Justice, Drexel University Department of Emergency Medicine. 2010. Healthy Communities Matter: The Importance of Place to the Health of Boys of Color. Los Angeles, CA: California Endowment. This report presents research about the negative health outcomes facing African-American and Latino boys and young men who are growing up in neighborhoods of concentrated disadvantage. The report also describes promising best practices and programs to address these problems. Topics include community violence.
Schwarz SW. 2009. Adolescent Violence and Unintentional Injury in the United States: Facts for Policymakers. New York, NY: National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP). This fact sheet presents statistics about adolescent violence and unintentional injury in the United States.
Stewart EA, Simons RL. 2009. The Code of the Street and African-American Adolescent Violence. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice (NIJ). This report describes research that examined relationships between neighborhood and family characteristics, racial discrimination, and street code values with violent behavior in young people.

Databases

The databases listed below are excellent tools for identifying data, additional literature and research, and programs about adolescent violence prevention. Many of the entries below contain tips on how to use the databases efficiently. Please note that databases vary in how terms should be entered; for example, some require quotation marks and others don't. Enter search phrases as shown in bold below.

Data

Child Trends DataBank. Over 100 key indicators of infant, child, and adolescent well-being. Data briefs about adolescent violence include physical fighting, students carrying weapons, adolescent homicide, firearm death, and violent crime victimization. Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization providing research and data to inform decision-making that affects families.
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. Crime data from law enforcement agencies across the United States. View the annual report, Crime in the United States, which includes tables depicting adolescent arrests by age and type of crime.
National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC): Data Project to Improve Adolescent and Young Adult Health. National and state-level profiles of key measures of adolescent and young adult health based on Healthy People 2010. Includes data about adolescent violence.
Title V Information System (Title V IS). Data from annual Title V Block Grant applications and reports submitted by all 59 U.S. states and jurisdictions. To learn about states' efforts to address adolescent violence prevention, conduct three searches. Select Measurement and Indicator Data and go to the State Data section. First, select State Priority Needs Keyword Search and choose Keyword: Intentional/Unintentional Injuries and Population: Adolescents. Click on Start Search to get your results. Next, return to Measurement and Indicator Data and select State Performance Measures. Click on Search by Keyword/Population. Select Keyword: Intentional/Unintentional Injuries and Population: Adolescents. Click on Start Search to get your results. Next, return to Measurement and Indicator Data and select State Outcome Measures. Click on Search by Keyword/Population. Select Keyword: Intentional/Unintentional Injuries and Population: Adolescents. Click on Start Search to get your results. Title V IS is a service of the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB).
WISQARS (Web-Based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System). Data on injury-related deaths, violent deaths, and nonfatal injuries (including violence-related injuries) for all age groups. WISQARS is presented by CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC). WISQARS data was used to compile Youth Violence: National and State Statistics at a Glance (2009).
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS): Youth Online. Data about health-risk behaviors and the prevalence of obesity and asthma among adolescents and young adults. To identify adolescent violence data, select a location (e.g., United States, state/territory, local). Select the health topic, Unintentional Injuries and Violence. Select a subtopic (e.g., Carried a gun) and a year(s) to get your results. Click on Make comparisons to compare two locations. Youth Online is a service of CDC's Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH).
Also see the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS), the Statistical Briefing Book, the National Youth Gang Survey Analysis, and the National Center for Education Statistics: Crime and Safety Surveys (CSS).

Literature and Research Databases

Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV) Databases. Information about violence-related research and literature; curricula and videotapes; prevention, intervention, and treatment programs; and survey instruments for program evaluation. CSPV is a research center within the Institute of Behavioral Science at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
ClinicalTrials.gov. Information about clinical research studies for a wide range of diseases, conditions, and health behaviors. Included are a summary of the purpose of the study, information about recruiting status, criteria for patient participation, location of the trial, and contact information. To identify studies, click on Search for Clinical Trials; enter the search phrase violence AND (youth OR adolescents); and click on Search to get your results. ClinicalTrials.gov is a service of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
MCH Library at the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health (NCEMCH), Georgetown University. Databases to collect, manage, and disseminate knowledge about MCH, with special emphasis on knowledge gained from initiatives and programs supported by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). The library's bibliographic database is

MCHLine®. Online catalog of materials in the MCH Library. To identify items on the topic, type adolescen violence in the keyword field of the MCHLine® search form. To narrow your search, add keywords (e.g., school) or a publication year or range of years. Also see the library's bibliography about bullying.

Also see the MCH Organizations Database and the MCH Projects Database.
National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Abstracts Database. Summaries of more than 205,000 criminal justice, juvenile justice, and substance abuse reports, articles, and audiovisual products from the United States and internationally. These resources include statistics, research findings, program descriptions, congressional hearing transcripts, and training materials. To identify items, type violence AND (youth or adolescents) in the General Search field and add a publication date range. Click on Search to get your results. Conduct additional searches using terms, such as bullying, gun violence, gangs, school safety, school violence, or victims. NCJRS is a federally sponsored resource offering justice and substance use information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide.

Also see the NCJRS online resource guide with links to selections of publications about adolescent violence and the NCJRS newsletter, JUSTINFO.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (RePORT): RePORTER. Information about reports, data, and analyses of NIH research activities, including information on NIH expenditures and the results of NIH-supported research. To identify information on the topic, enter youth violence in the search field and click on Submit query to get your results. Narrow your search by selecting a state or adding terms to other search fields.
STRYVE: Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere: Advanced Search for Resources. Information about youth violence prevention materials that include fact sheets, reports, bulletins, brochures, manuals, and training guides.
PubMed. Over 20 million citations for biomedical articles from MEDLINE and life science journals. Citations may include links to full-text articles from PubMed Central or publisher websites. To identify articles on the topic, enter the term violence NOT domestic violence in the search box. Click on Limits and make the following selections on the page: select a date (e.g. Published in the last 2 years); click on Languages: English; click on Ages: Adolescent; and select Search Field Tags: MeSH Major Topic. Click on Search to get your results. To narrow your search further or for additional searches, use the MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) database to identify terms (e.g., (violence NOT domestic violence) AND schools). PubMed is a service of the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
SafetyLit: Injury Prevention Literature Update. Abstracts of reports and journal articles about injury occurrence and risk factors. To identify literature about adolescent violence, select Search Archives. Limit your search to a range of publication years, and click on the box, Limit your search to these categories. Click on Deselect All. Select Age: Adolescents, and select Violence and Weapons Issues. Select any other topic relevant to your area of interest (e.g., Program and Other Evaluations, Effectiveness Studies). Click on Search Archives to get your results. Subscribe to the SafetyLit Update and receive a weekly e-mail notice about new additions to the database. SafetyLit is presented by the San Diego State University, Graduate School of Public Health in collaboration with the World Health Organization.
Also see the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA), the Firearms Research Digest, and the Center on Media and Child Health (CMCH) Database of Research.

Programs Databases

Community Pediatrics Grants Database. Archive of community pediatrics grant projects. Identify projects by selecting Developmental Stage/Age: Adolescents and Topic: Injury and Violence. Click on Advanced Submit to get your results. The database is a service of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
Discretionary Grant Information System (DGIS). Information for more than 900 grants issued by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). To identify grants, select Abstracts. Type violence adolescents in the search field, and click on All the words. Click on Search to get your results. To find products and publications produced by MCHB training grantees, select Program Data; select Training; and select Search Products and Publications. Type violence adolescents in the search field, and click on All the words. Click on Search to get your results.
FindYouthInfo.gov: Program Directory. Information about evidence-based, federally funded youth programs. Search by risk factor (e.g., victimization and exposure to violence) or protective factor (e.g., Involvement with positive peer group activities). Click on Search to get your results.
Health Services Research Projects in Progress (HSRProj). Information about ongoing health services research and public health projects. To identify projects, enter (violence NOT domestic violence) AND adolescents in the search box. Click on Search to get your results. HSRProj is funded by the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
MCH Library at the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health (NCEMCH), Georgetown University.

MCH Organizations Database. Information about more than 2,000 government, professional, and voluntary organizations involved in MCH activities, primarily at a national level. Type violence in the keyword field of the database search form. Click on Search MCH Organizations to get your results.

MCH Projects Database. Online catalog of projects funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) through October 1, 2002. To identify projects that focus on the topic, type adolescents violence in the abstract field of the database search form. Click on Search MCH Projects to get your results. Also see MCHB's Discretionary Grant Information System (DGIS).
National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices (NREPP). Information about interventions for the prevention and treatment of mental health conditions and substance use disorders. To identify interventions, click on Find Interventions. Click on Areas of Interest: Violence prevention and Study Populations/Age: Adolescent. Click on Search to get your results. NREPP is a service of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
STRYVE: Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere: Advanced Search for Organizations. Information about organizations that provide products or services to support youth violence prevention efforts.
Prevention Research Centers (PRC): Research Projects. Information about research projects conducted by CDC-funded Prevention Research Centers, which work as an interdependent network of community, academic, and public health partners to conduct prevention research and promote the wide use of practices proven to promote good health. To identify adolescent violence prevention projects, click on Find research project descriptions that meet specified criteria. Select Health Topics: Violence prevention, and select Age Group: Adolescents. Click on Search to get your results.
Also see the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV) Databases, the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA), and the Directory of Crime Victim Services.

News and Commentary

National Criminal Justice Reference Service: JUSTINFO. This biweekly electronic newsletter announces new federally sponsored publications, events, and funding and training opportunities about criminal justice, juvenile justice, and substance abuse.
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP).

JUVJUST. This service sends announcements about juvenile justice and other youth service-related publications, funding opportunities, and events.

OJJDP News @ a Glance. This bimonthly electronic newsletter highlights OJJDP activities, publications, funding opportunities, and upcoming events.
Also see SafetyLit, GANGINFO, the HELP for Victim Service Providers Web Forum, and the Safe Start Center e-Newsletter.

Resources for Families

See the MCH Library family resource brief Teen Violence Prevention.

Resources for Schools

See the MCH Library school resource brief, School Violence Prevention

Resources on Specific Aspects of Adolescent Violence

Firearms
Gangs
Media Violence
Violent Crime Victims

Firearms

Harvard Injury Control Research Center (HICRC). Information about research programs, conferences, and seminars on adolescent violence, particularly involving firearms. Resources and initiatives include

Firearms Research Digest. Citations for journal articles from the social science, criminology, legal, medical, and public health literature concerning firearms.

Means Matter: Suicide, Guns, and Public Health. Program information, education materials, and research about the relationship between firearms at home and increased risk of suicide.
Center to Prevent Youth Violence (CPYV). Information and materials for its national initiatives:

ASK Campaign (Asking Saves Kids) encourages parents to ask if there are guns in the homes where their children play. ASK is a collaborative effort with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

National Safe Schools Week aims to empower students to keep their schools safe by encouraging them to speak up against school violence, including gun violence.

SPEAK UP. Hotline and awareness campaign that makes it safe and easy for students to anonymously report threats of violence, while working to turn around negative social norms that prevent young people from “speaking up.” Telephone: (866) 773-2587 (SPEAK UP).
Children's Defense Fund. 2009. Protect Children, Not Guns 2009. Washington, DC: Children's Defense Fund (CDF). This annual report documents the impact on children and adolescents of weak gun laws and easy access to guns. The report includes information on gun homicides, suicides, and unintentional shooting deaths by age group, race/ethnicity, and state.
Also see the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV).

Gangs

National Gang Center (NGC). Research and program information and tools to assist in developing and implementing effective community-based gang prevention, intervention, and suppression strategies. Includes training information, gang-related state legislation and municipal codes, and an updated list of newspaper articles on nationwide gang activity. NGC is supported by the Department of Justice. Resources include

GANGINFO. This electronic forum is for professionals working with adolescent gangs.

Guide to Assessing Your Community's Youth Gang Problem. (2009).

National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Analysis and findings from the ongoing survey of law-enforcement agencies to assess the extent of adolescent gang problems by measuring the presence, characteristics, and behaviors of local gangs in jurisdictions throughout the United States.

OJJDP Comprehensive Gang Model: Planning for Implementation. (2009). [Manual].
National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education, and Families. 2010. Preventing Gang Violence and Building Communities Where Young People Thrive. Washington, DC: National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education, and Families. This toolkit draws upon lessons learned from the California Cities Gang Prevention Network to identify strategies for reducing gang violence and victimization. Each of the 13 network cities is implementing a comprehensive gang-reduction plan that blends prevention, intervention, and enforcement techniques.
See the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) fact sheets, Trauma in the Lives of Gang-Involved Youth: Tips for Volunteers and Community Organizations (2009) and Your Child and Gangs: What You Need to Know About Trauma. Tips for Parents (2009).
Also see the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV), Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA), and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP).

Media Violence

Center for Media Literacy (CML). Articles and educational materials about media violence. CML is a nonprofit membership organization supporting media-literacy education for families and schools nationwide.
Center on Media and Child Health (CMCH). Online catalog of research articles examining the relationship between media exposure and health-risk behaviors, including violence. CMCH is a joint project of Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard School of Public Health.
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and Brookings Institution. 2008. Children and Electronic Media. Princeton, NJ: Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs; Washington, DC: Brookings Institution. (The Future of Children; v. 18, no. 1; Spring 2008). This publication features nine articles about the influence of electronic media on the well-being of children and adolescents. Topics include how exposure to different media forms is linked with such aspects of child well-being as school achievement, cognition, engagement in extracurricula activities, social interaction with peers and family, aggression, fear and anxiety, risky behaviors, and healthy lifestyle choices. Media violence is addressed. An executive summary, policy brief, and article summaries accompany the publication.
Also see the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA).

Violent Crime Victims

National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC): Youth Initiative. Tools for adolescents about how to recognize a crime, what emotions to expect, and how to receive or give help. Resources for schools, youth organizations, victim service agencies, and other community groups to reach out to adolescents and develop ways to make it safer for them to disclose their victimization. NCVC also offers a toll-free hotline for victims of all types of crime.
National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). Resources for families, educators, health and social services professionals, policymakers, and the media about child and adolescent traumatic stress, effective interventions, data, and terrorism and disaster preparedness to lessen traumatic effects. Some materials are available in Spanish. NCTSN aims to raise the standard of care and improve access to services for traumatized children and adolescents, their families, and communities throughout the United States.
Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center. Program, training, and funding information and publications for victim service providers and allied professionals about victim services, victim-witness programs, and violent crime. Includes links to research and statistics about victims of crime. Resources include

2010 National Crime Victims' Rights Week Resource Guide. (2010).

Directory of Crime Victim Services. Search by location, type of victimization, services needed, and agency type.

HELP for Victim Service Providers Web Forum. These online discussion groups serve as a forum for victim service providers and allied professionals to share ideas about best practices.

Victim Impact: Listen and Learn Curriculum. (2009). This curriculum aims to help offenders become aware of the impact that crime has on victims and then take responsibility and make amends for their actions.

What You Can Do If You Are a Victim of Crime (rev. ed.). (2010). [Brochure]. Also available in Spanish.
Safe Start Center. Issue briefs, research and evaluation reports, service delivery strategies, and other tools for health and social services professionals, educators, and families to reduce the impact of children's and adolescents' exposure to violence. Some materials are available in Spanish. Safe Start is funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Resources include

Children's Exposure to Violence: A Comprehensive National Survey. (2009). [Report].

Healing the Invisible Wounds: Children's Exposure to Violence. A Guide for Families. (2009). Also available in Spanish.

Safe Start: Promising Approaches Communities. Working Together to Help Children Exposed to Violence. (2008). [Report].

Safe Start Center e-Newsletter. This periodic newsletter announces events and resources about the impact of exposure to family and community violence on children and their families.
Linh Vuong L, Silva F, Marchionna S. 2009. Children Exposed to Violence. Oakland, CA: National Council on Crime and Delinquency. This report describes what is known about the effects of violence on children and adolescents, the types of violence that they are exposed to, and what programs might most effectively mitigate the trauma in both the short and the long term.
See the MCH Library resource brief, Reaching Out to Children and Youth Following Disasters.
Also see CDC's Guide to Community Preventive Services.

Related MCH Library Resources

Bullying resource brief
Child maltreatment resource brief
Community Services Locator: An Online Directory for Finding Community Services for Children and Families knowledge path
Domestic Violence knowledge path (Includes sections about dating violence among adolescents and children exposed to domestic violence), family resource brief
Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Challenges in Children and Adolescents knowledge path, family resource brief, school resource brief
Reaching Out to Children and Youth Following Disasters resource brief
Social and Emotional Development in Children and Adolescents knowledge path, family resource brief, school resource brief
Suicide Prevention resource brief

Adolescent Violence Prevention: Knowledge Path, 6th ed. (September 2010). (Updated: September 2011).
Author: Susan Brune Lorenzo, M.L.S., MCH Library.
Reviewers: Olivia K. Pickett, M.A., M.L.S., MCH Library; Lissa Pressfield, M.H.S., Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs.
Editor: Ruth Barzel, M.A., MCH Library.

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Introduction This knowledge path about adolescent violence prevention has been compiled by the MCH Library at Georgetown University. The volume of materials on this topic is vast and covers many disciplines, including public health, medicine, criminal justice, education, and social services. This path offers a selection of current, high-quality resources from these disciplines that measure, document, and monitor the problem; identify risk and protective factors; and report on promising intervention strategies. Separate sections identify resources on specific aspects of adolescent violence: bullying, dating violence, family violence, firearms, gangs, media violence, school violence, suicide, and violent-crime victimization. This knowledge path is aimed at health and social services professionals, educators, policymakers, community activists, and families, and it will be updated periodically. Overview See Understanding Youth Violence (2009) by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This fact sheet describes the problem of adolescent violence in the United States and outlines its occurrence and consequences, the groups at risk, and prevention strategies. Also see Youth Violence: Facts at a Glance (2009), which presents data about youth violence and violence-related behaviors, health disparities among victims of violence, non-fatal injuries due to violence, school violence, bullying, and juvenile arrests. General Resources for Professionals Websites American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): Violence Prevention. Policy statements and patient-education materials on topics such as bullying and firearms. Resources and initiatives include Connected Kids: Safe, Strong, Secure. Information about this program to integrate violence prevention efforts in pediatric practices and the community. Includes a clinical guide and brochures for parents, children, and adolescents on topics such as bullying, discipline, interpersonal skills, and television violence. Role of the Pediatrician in Youth Violence Prevention. (2009). [Policy statement]. Also see the ASK Campaign (Asking Saves Kids). Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV). Program information, publications, and databases to assist with the development and evaluation of effective violence prevention programs. Topics include school violence, bullying, gangs, and firearms. CSPV is a research center at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Resources and initiatives include Blueprints for Violence Prevention. Information and materials about model programs that have been effective in reducing adolescent violent crime, aggression, delinquency, and substance use. Also see Safe Communities~Safe Schools (SCSS). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Information and resources about preventing adolescent violence in schools, homes, and communities. Resources and initiatives include Guide to Community Preventive Services: Violence Prevention Focused on Children and Youth. Recommendations for population-based interventions to reduce or prevent violence by and against children and adolescents. Addresses early childhood home visitation, firearm laws, reducing psychological harm from traumatic events, school-based violence prevention programs, therapeutic foster care, and youth transfer to adult criminal courts. Mortality Among Teenagers Aged 12–19 Years: United States, 1999–2006. (2010). This data brief indicates that almost 75 percent of all adolescent deaths are attributable to unintentional and violence-related injuries and are considered preventable. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC): Youth Violence. Program information, data, assessment tools, definitions, and resources that describe risk and protective factors, consequences, prevention strategies, and the translation of research into practice. Recent resources and initiatives include Evaluation for Improvement: A Seven-Step Empowerment Evaluation Approach for Violence Prevention Organizations. (2010). [Manual]. National Academic Centers of Excellence (ACE) on Youth Violence Prevention. Information about 10 university-based research centers that are collaborating with local communities and community-based organizations to develop, implement, and evaluate promising adolescent violence prevention efforts. National Strategy to Prevent Youth Violence. (2009). [Fact sheet]. STRYVE: Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere. Tools to plan, implement, and evaluate sustainable adolescent-violence-prevention strategies that are based upon the best available evidence. Includes online training modules, data, research documents, educational materials, policies, program information, practice guidelines, and news. Also presents databases of adolescent-violence-prevention materials and organizations. Also see CDC's Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS), school violence resources, and the Prevention Research Centers (PRC). Children's Safety Network (CSN): Youth Violence Prevention. Publications, presentations, and links to additional resources about adolescent violence prevention, including bullying and school violence prevention. CSN provides information, training, and assistance to the maternal and child health (MCH) community to reduce child and adolescent injuries and violence. A recent publication is Weaving a Safety Net: Integrating Injury and Violence Prevention into Maternal and Child Health Programs. (2009). [Report]. Fight Crime: Invest in Kids. Program information, legislative news, and publications about crime-prevention topics, including early education and care, child abuse and neglect prevention, after-school programs, and programs that help troubled adolescents get back on track. Fight Crime: Invest in Kids is a national anti-crime organization of law-enforcement leaders and violence survivors. Recent publications include After-School Programs Prevent Crime. (2009). [Fact sheet]. From America's Front Line Against Crime: Proven Investments in Kids Will Prevent Crime and Violence. (2009). [Issue brief]. Interventions for Juvenile Offenders Prevent Crime. (2009). [Fact sheet]. Invest in Early Education Now, Spend Less on Prison Later. (2009). [Report, Issue brief]. FindYouthInfo.gov. Program and funding information and resources to help youth-serving organizations and community partnerships plan, implement, and participate in effective programs for youth. FindYouthInfo.gov was created by the Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs, which is composed of representatives from 12 federal agencies that support programs and services focusing on youth. See the FindYouthInfo.gov directory of evidence-based programs. Girls Study Group. Research bulletins, presentations, and background materials about female juvenile delinquency and violence. The Girls Study Group is funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Recent bulletins include Causes and Correlates of Girls' Delinquency. (2010). Resilient Girls: Factors That Protect Against Delinquency. (2009). Healthy People 2020. Information about this national health-promotion and disease-prevention initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services. View the overview, objectives, and recommended interventions and resources for adolescent health, including adolescent violence prevention. Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA): Youth Violence. Electronic clearinghouse of links to published research, curricula and other educational material, and organizations. Bullying, school violence, gangs, and media violence are some of the topics addressed. MINCAVA is located at the University of Minnesota School of Social Work. National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC). Fact sheets, policy briefs, reports, and other materials about adolescent health on topics that include positive youth development and violence. NAHIC is based at the University of California, San Francisco. Also see NAHIC's Data Project to Improve Adolescent and Young Adult Health. National Technical Assistance Center for Children's Mental Health. Program and conference information and other resources about reforming services and building systems of care for children and adolescents who have, or are at risk for, mental health challenges and their families. Offers a matrix of over 50 programs across the country that focus on Asian American/Pacific Islander adolescent development and violence prevention. Presents a set of briefs that describe the work and successes of 29 coalitions for adolescent violence prevention. Also offers a monthly webinar series that covers important and emerging trends in mental health. The center is part of the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development (GUCCHD). Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Program, conference, and funding information; statistics; state contact lists; and publications, including electronic newsletters. Topics include girls' delinquency and gang violence prevention. OJJDP is part of the Department of Justice (DOJ). Resources include Socioeconomic Mapping and Resource Topography (SMART) System. A free, web-based geographic information system that communities can use to upload local maps of crime locations and connect them to maps of local intervention programs and community resources. See Get SMART—Mapping Resources for Crime and Delinquency Prevention (2010) for an overview of SMART. Statistical Briefing Book (SBB). Statistics about juvenile crime and victimization and about youth involved in the juvenile justice system. Also see the National Gang Center (NGC). Prevention Institute. Program information, policy research and analysis, publications, presentations, and other materials about violence prevention. The Prevention Institute is a national, non-profit organization that promotes policies, organizational practices, and collaborative efforts to improve health and quality of life. Recent initiatives and publications include Moving from Them to Us: Challenges in Reframing Violence Among Youth. (2009). [Paper]. Preventing Violence: A Primer. (2009). Public Health Approach to Preventing Violence: FAQ. (2009). [Issue brief]. Urban Networks to Increase Thriving Youth (UNITY) Through Violence Prevention. Background information, program materials, assessment and planning tools, and a webinar training series about this program to strengthen and support cities' violence prevention efforts. UNITY is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Public/Private Ventures (P/PV). Information about effective programs and reports aimed at reducing crime and violence, promoting the successful reentry of formerly incarcerated adults, and helping high-risk adolescents avoid deeper involvement with the criminal justice system. Other programs address mentoring, out-of-school time, and in-school initiatives. P/PV is a national nonprofit organization focused on creating and strengthening programs that improve lives in low-income communities. RESOURCE Project. Education tools for faculty from a variety of disciplines to use in enhancing the adolescent-health training of public health students. Includes a 12-unit adolescent-health curriculum on topics such as adolescent development, mental health and suicide, violence, school interventions, and community interventions. The project is a collaborative effort spearheaded by the Public Policy Analysis and Education Center for Middle Childhood, Adolescent and Young Adult Health. Youth Alive! Program information and program replication materials for initiatives to prevent adolescent violence and develop adolescent leadership in California communities. Youth ALIVE! provides training to adolescents to build their leadership skills and support them in advocating for solutions to violence for themselves and their communities. Additional Electronic Publications Fox HB, McManus MA, Arnold KN. 2010. Significant Multiple Risk Behaviors Among U.S. High School Students. Washington, DC: National Alliance to Advance Adolescent Health. This fact sheet describes the multiple health risk behaviors among high school students, including behaviors that contribute to violence. It reports on the prevalence and co-occurrence of these health risk behaviors; examines differences by gender, race and ethnicity, and grade level; and considers implications for preventive interventions. Greenwood P. 2010. Preventing and Reducing Youth Crime and Violence: Using Evidence-Based Practices. Sacramento, CA: Governor's Office of Gang and Youth Violence Policy. This paper describes an examination of evidence-based programs and strategies, which if implemented correctly, reliably and significantly reduce juvenile crime and violence. The appendix contains a list of the programs and strategies that are most likely to prevent and reduce youth crime and violence and several programs and strategies that do not work. Kaba M, Mathew JC, Haines N, eds. 2010. Something Is Wrong: Exploring the Roots of Youth Violence. Chicago, IL: Project NIA, Chicago Freedom School, and Teachers for Social Justice. This curriculum aims to guide adolescents and their adult allies to analyze the root causes of youth violence and create local solutions. Krisberg B, Hartney C, Wolf A, Silva F. 2009. Youth Violence Myths and Realities: A Tale of Three Cities. Oakland, CA: National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD). This report presents findings and recommendations from a study to assess the intersections of media coverage of youth crime, public policy, and true trends and issues in youth crime in three U.S. cities. MacDonald J, Bluthenthal RN, Golinelli D, Kofner A, Stokes RJ, Sehgal A, Fain T, Beletsky L. 2009. Neighborhood Effects on Crime and Youth Violence: The Role of Business Improvement Districts in Los Angeles. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation. This report examines the impact of business improvement districts (BIDs) on crime and youth violence in Los Angeles. Office of Applied Studies (OAS). 2009. Violent Behaviors Among Adolescent Females. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). This report presents data about the prevalence of three types of violent behavior among girls ages 12–17. Office of the Surgeon General. 2001. Youth Violence: A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). This report examines the magnitude, causes, and prevention of adolescent violence from a public health perspective. RAND Corporation, PolicyLink, Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice, Center for Nonviolence and Social Justice, Drexel University Department of Emergency Medicine. 2010. Healthy Communities Matter: The Importance of Place to the Health of Boys of Color. Los Angeles, CA: California Endowment. This report presents research about the negative health outcomes facing African-American and Latino boys and young men who are growing up in neighborhoods of concentrated disadvantage. The report also describes promising best practices and programs to address these problems. Topics include community violence. Schwarz SW. 2009. Adolescent Violence and Unintentional Injury in the United States: Facts for Policymakers. New York, NY: National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP). This fact sheet presents statistics about adolescent violence and unintentional injury in the United States. Stewart EA, Simons RL. 2009. The Code of the Street and African-American Adolescent Violence. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice (NIJ). This report describes research that examined relationships between neighborhood and family characteristics, racial discrimination, and street code values with violent behavior in young people. Databases The databases listed below are excellent tools for identifying data, additional literature and research, and programs about adolescent violence prevention. Many of the entries below contain tips on how to use the databases efficiently. Please note that databases vary in how terms should be entered; for example, some require quotation marks and others don't. Enter search phrases as shown in bold below. Data Child Trends DataBank. Over 100 key indicators of infant, child, and adolescent well-being. Data briefs about adolescent violence include physical fighting, students carrying weapons, adolescent homicide, firearm death, and violent crime victimization. Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization providing research and data to inform decision-making that affects families. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. Crime data from law enforcement agencies across the United States. View the annual report, Crime in the United States, which includes tables depicting adolescent arrests by age and type of crime. National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC): Data Project to Improve Adolescent and Young Adult Health. National and state-level profiles of key measures of adolescent and young adult health based on Healthy People 2010. Includes data about adolescent violence. Title V Information System (Title V IS). Data from annual Title V Block Grant applications and reports submitted by all 59 U.S. states and jurisdictions. To learn about states' efforts to address adolescent violence prevention, conduct three searches. Select Measurement and Indicator Data and go to the State Data section. First, select State Priority Needs Keyword Search and choose Keyword: Intentional/Unintentional Injuries and Population: Adolescents. Click on Start Search to get your results. Next, return to Measurement and Indicator Data and select State Performance Measures. Click on Search by Keyword/Population. Select Keyword: Intentional/Unintentional Injuries and Population: Adolescents. Click on Start Search to get your results. Next, return to Measurement and Indicator Data and select State Outcome Measures. Click on Search by Keyword/Population. Select Keyword: Intentional/Unintentional Injuries and Population: Adolescents. Click on Start Search to get your results. Title V IS is a service of the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). WISQARS (Web-Based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System). Data on injury-related deaths, violent deaths, and nonfatal injuries (including violence-related injuries) for all age groups. WISQARS is presented by CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC). WISQARS data was used to compile Youth Violence: National and State Statistics at a Glance (2009). Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS): Youth Online. Data about health-risk behaviors and the prevalence of obesity and asthma among adolescents and young adults. To identify adolescent violence data, select a location (e.g., United States, state/territory, local). Select the health topic, Unintentional Injuries and Violence. Select a subtopic (e.g., Carried a gun) and a year(s) to get your results. Click on Make comparisons to compare two locations. Youth Online is a service of CDC's Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH). Also see the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS), the Statistical Briefing Book, the National Youth Gang Survey Analysis, and the National Center for Education Statistics: Crime and Safety Surveys (CSS). Literature and Research Databases Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV) Databases. Information about violence-related research and literature; curricula and videotapes; prevention, intervention, and treatment programs; and survey instruments for program evaluation. CSPV is a research center within the Institute of Behavioral Science at the University of Colorado at Boulder. ClinicalTrials.gov. Information about clinical research studies for a wide range of diseases, conditions, and health behaviors. Included are a summary of the purpose of the study, information about recruiting status, criteria for patient participation, location of the trial, and contact information. To identify studies, click on Search for Clinical Trials; enter the search phrase violence AND (youth OR adolescents); and click on Search to get your results. ClinicalTrials.gov is a service of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). MCH Library at the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health (NCEMCH), Georgetown University. Databases to collect, manage, and disseminate knowledge about MCH, with special emphasis on knowledge gained from initiatives and programs supported by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). The library's bibliographic database is MCHLine®. Online catalog of materials in the MCH Library. To identify items on the topic, type adolescen violence in the keyword field of the MCHLine® search form. To narrow your search, add keywords (e.g., school) or a publication year or range of years. Also see the library's bibliography about bullying. Also see the MCH Organizations Database and the MCH Projects Database. National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Abstracts Database. Summaries of more than 205,000 criminal justice, juvenile justice, and substance abuse reports, articles, and audiovisual products from the United States and internationally. These resources include statistics, research findings, program descriptions, congressional hearing transcripts, and training materials. To identify items, type violence AND (youth or adolescents) in the General Search field and add a publication date range. Click on Search to get your results. Conduct additional searches using terms, such as bullying, gun violence, gangs, school safety, school violence, or victims. NCJRS is a federally sponsored resource offering justice and substance use information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide. Also see the NCJRS online resource guide with links to selections of publications about adolescent violence and the NCJRS newsletter, JUSTINFO. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (RePORT): RePORTER. Information about reports, data, and analyses of NIH research activities, including information on NIH expenditures and the results of NIH-supported research. To identify information on the topic, enter youth violence in the search field and click on Submit query to get your results. Narrow your search by selecting a state or adding terms to other search fields. STRYVE: Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere: Advanced Search for Resources. Information about youth violence prevention materials that include fact sheets, reports, bulletins, brochures, manuals, and training guides. PubMed. Over 20 million citations for biomedical articles from MEDLINE and life science journals. Citations may include links to full-text articles from PubMed Central or publisher websites. To identify articles on the topic, enter the term violence NOT domestic violence in the search box. Click on Limits and make the following selections on the page: select a date (e.g. Published in the last 2 years); click on Languages: English; click on Ages: Adolescent; and select Search Field Tags: MeSH Major Topic. Click on Search to get your results. To narrow your search further or for additional searches, use the MeSH (Medical Subject Headings) database to identify terms (e.g., (violence NOT domestic violence) AND schools). PubMed is a service of the National Library of Medicine (NLM). SafetyLit: Injury Prevention Literature Update. Abstracts of reports and journal articles about injury occurrence and risk factors. To identify literature about adolescent violence, select Search Archives. Limit your search to a range of publication years, and click on the box, Limit your search to these categories. Click on Deselect All. Select Age: Adolescents, and select Violence and Weapons Issues. Select any other topic relevant to your area of interest (e.g., Program and Other Evaluations, Effectiveness Studies). Click on Search Archives to get your results. Subscribe to the SafetyLit Update and receive a weekly e-mail notice about new additions to the database. SafetyLit is presented by the San Diego State University, Graduate School of Public Health in collaboration with the World Health Organization. Also see the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA), the Firearms Research Digest, and the Center on Media and Child Health (CMCH) Database of Research. Programs Databases Community Pediatrics Grants Database. Archive of community pediatrics grant projects. Identify projects by selecting Developmental Stage/Age: Adolescents and Topic: Injury and Violence. Click on Advanced Submit to get your results. The database is a service of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Discretionary Grant Information System (DGIS). Information for more than 900 grants issued by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). To identify grants, select Abstracts. Type violence adolescents in the search field, and click on All the words. Click on Search to get your results. To find products and publications produced by MCHB training grantees, select Program Data; select Training; and select Search Products and Publications. Type violence adolescents in the search field, and click on All the words. Click on Search to get your results. FindYouthInfo.gov: Program Directory. Information about evidence-based, federally funded youth programs. Search by risk factor (e.g., victimization and exposure to violence) or protective factor (e.g., Involvement with positive peer group activities). Click on Search to get your results. Health Services Research Projects in Progress (HSRProj). Information about ongoing health services research and public health projects. To identify projects, enter (violence NOT domestic violence) AND adolescents in the search box. Click on Search to get your results. HSRProj is funded by the National Library of Medicine (NLM). MCH Library at the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health (NCEMCH), Georgetown University. MCH Organizations Database. Information about more than 2,000 government, professional, and voluntary organizations involved in MCH activities, primarily at a national level. Type violence in the keyword field of the database search form. Click on Search MCH Organizations to get your results. MCH Projects Database. Online catalog of projects funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) through October 1, 2002. To identify projects that focus on the topic, type adolescents violence in the abstract field of the database search form. Click on Search MCH Projects to get your results. Also see MCHB's Discretionary Grant Information System (DGIS). National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices (NREPP). Information about interventions for the prevention and treatment of mental health conditions and substance use disorders. To identify interventions, click on Find Interventions. Click on Areas of Interest: Violence prevention and Study Populations/Age: Adolescent. Click on Search to get your results. NREPP is a service of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). STRYVE: Striving to Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere: Advanced Search for Organizations. Information about organizations that provide products or services to support youth violence prevention efforts. Prevention Research Centers (PRC): Research Projects. Information about research projects conducted by CDC-funded Prevention Research Centers, which work as an interdependent network of community, academic, and public health partners to conduct prevention research and promote the wide use of practices proven to promote good health. To identify adolescent violence prevention projects, click on Find research project descriptions that meet specified criteria. Select Health Topics: Violence prevention, and select Age Group: Adolescents. Click on Search to get your results. Also see the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV) Databases, the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA), and the Directory of Crime Victim Services. News and Commentary National Criminal Justice Reference Service: JUSTINFO. This biweekly electronic newsletter announces new federally sponsored publications, events, and funding and training opportunities about criminal justice, juvenile justice, and substance abuse. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). JUVJUST. This service sends announcements about juvenile justice and other youth service-related publications, funding opportunities, and events. OJJDP News @ a Glance. This bimonthly electronic newsletter highlights OJJDP activities, publications, funding opportunities, and upcoming events. Also see SafetyLit, GANGINFO, the HELP for Victim Service Providers Web Forum, and the Safe Start Center e-Newsletter. Resources for Families See the MCH Library family resource brief Teen Violence Prevention. Resources for Schools See the MCH Library school resource brief, School Violence Prevention Resources on Specific Aspects of Adolescent Violence Firearms Gangs Media Violence Violent Crime Victims Firearms Harvard Injury Control Research Center (HICRC). Information about research programs, conferences, and seminars on adolescent violence, particularly involving firearms. Resources and initiatives include Firearms Research Digest. Citations for journal articles from the social science, criminology, legal, medical, and public health literature concerning firearms. Means Matter: Suicide, Guns, and Public Health. Program information, education materials, and research about the relationship between firearms at home and increased risk of suicide. Center to Prevent Youth Violence (CPYV). Information and materials for its national initiatives: ASK Campaign (Asking Saves Kids) encourages parents to ask if there are guns in the homes where their children play. ASK is a collaborative effort with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). National Safe Schools Week aims to empower students to keep their schools safe by encouraging them to speak up against school violence, including gun violence. SPEAK UP. Hotline and awareness campaign that makes it safe and easy for students to anonymously report threats of violence, while working to turn around negative social norms that prevent young people from “speaking up.” Telephone: (866) 773-2587 (SPEAK UP). Children's Defense Fund. 2009. Protect Children, Not Guns 2009. Washington, DC: Children's Defense Fund (CDF). This annual report documents the impact on children and adolescents of weak gun laws and easy access to guns. The report includes information on gun homicides, suicides, and unintentional shooting deaths by age group, race/ethnicity, and state. Also see the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV). Gangs National Gang Center (NGC). Research and program information and tools to assist in developing and implementing effective community-based gang prevention, intervention, and suppression strategies. Includes training information, gang-related state legislation and municipal codes, and an updated list of newspaper articles on nationwide gang activity. NGC is supported by the Department of Justice. Resources include GANGINFO. This electronic forum is for professionals working with adolescent gangs. Guide to Assessing Your Community's Youth Gang Problem. (2009). National Youth Gang Survey Analysis. Analysis and findings from the ongoing survey of law-enforcement agencies to assess the extent of adolescent gang problems by measuring the presence, characteristics, and behaviors of local gangs in jurisdictions throughout the United States. OJJDP Comprehensive Gang Model: Planning for Implementation. (2009). [Manual]. National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education, and Families. 2010. Preventing Gang Violence and Building Communities Where Young People Thrive. Washington, DC: National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education, and Families. This toolkit draws upon lessons learned from the California Cities Gang Prevention Network to identify strategies for reducing gang violence and victimization. Each of the 13 network cities is implementing a comprehensive gang-reduction plan that blends prevention, intervention, and enforcement techniques. See the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) fact sheets, Trauma in the Lives of Gang-Involved Youth: Tips for Volunteers and Community Organizations (2009) and Your Child and Gangs: What You Need to Know About Trauma. Tips for Parents (2009). Also see the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV), Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA), and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Media Violence Center for Media Literacy (CML). Articles and educational materials about media violence. CML is a nonprofit membership organization supporting media-literacy education for families and schools nationwide. Center on Media and Child Health (CMCH). Online catalog of research articles examining the relationship between media exposure and health-risk behaviors, including violence. CMCH is a joint project of Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard School of Public Health. Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and Brookings Institution. 2008. Children and Electronic Media. Princeton, NJ: Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs; Washington, DC: Brookings Institution. (The Future of Children; v. 18, no. 1; Spring 2008). This publication features nine articles about the influence of electronic media on the well-being of children and adolescents. Topics include how exposure to different media forms is linked with such aspects of child well-being as school achievement, cognition, engagement in extracurricula activities, social interaction with peers and family, aggression, fear and anxiety, risky behaviors, and healthy lifestyle choices. Media violence is addressed. An executive summary, policy brief, and article summaries accompany the publication. Also see the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse (MINCAVA). Violent Crime Victims National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC): Youth Initiative. Tools for adolescents about how to recognize a crime, what emotions to expect, and how to receive or give help. Resources for schools, youth organizations, victim service agencies, and other community groups to reach out to adolescents and develop ways to make it safer for them to disclose their victimization. NCVC also offers a toll-free hotline for victims of all types of crime. National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). Resources for families, educators, health and social services professionals, policymakers, and the media about child and adolescent traumatic stress, effective interventions, data, and terrorism and disaster preparedness to lessen traumatic effects. Some materials are available in Spanish. NCTSN aims to raise the standard of care and improve access to services for traumatized children and adolescents, their families, and communities throughout the United States. Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center. Program, training, and funding information and publications for victim service providers and allied professionals about victim services, victim-witness programs, and violent crime. Includes links to research and statistics about victims of crime. Resources include 2010 National Crime Victims' Rights Week Resource Guide. (2010). Directory of Crime Victim Services. Search by location, type of victimization, services needed, and agency type. HELP for Victim Service Providers Web Forum. These online discussion groups serve as a forum for victim service providers and allied professionals to share ideas about best practices. Victim Impact: Listen and Learn Curriculum. (2009). This curriculum aims to help offenders become aware of the impact that crime has on victims and then take responsibility and make amends for their actions. What You Can Do If You Are a Victim of Crime (rev. ed.). (2010). [Brochure]. Also available in Spanish. Safe Start Center. Issue briefs, research and evaluation reports, service delivery strategies, and other tools for health and social services professionals, educators, and families to reduce the impact of children's and adolescents' exposure to violence. Some materials are available in Spanish. Safe Start is funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). Resources include Children's Exposure to Violence: A Comprehensive National Survey. (2009). [Report]. Healing the Invisible Wounds: Children's Exposure to Violence. A Guide for Families. (2009). Also available in Spanish. Safe Start: Promising Approaches Communities. Working Together to Help Children Exposed to Violence. (2008). [Report]. Safe Start Center e-Newsletter. This periodic newsletter announces events and resources about the impact of exposure to family and community violence on children and their families. Linh Vuong L, Silva F, Marchionna S. 2009. Children Exposed to Violence. Oakland, CA: National Council on Crime and Delinquency. This report describes what is known about the effects of violence on children and adolescents, the types of violence that they are exposed to, and what programs might most effectively mitigate the trauma in both the short and the long term. See the MCH Library resource brief, Reaching Out to Children and Youth Following Disasters. Also see CDC's Guide to Community Preventive Services. Related MCH Library Resources Bullying resource brief Child maltreatment resource brief Community Services Locator: An Online Directory for Finding Community Services for Children and Families knowledge path Domestic Violence knowledge path (Includes sections about dating violence among adolescents and children exposed to domestic violence), family resource brief Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Challenges in Children and Adolescents knowledge path, family resource brief, school resource brief Reaching Out to Children and Youth Following Disasters resource brief Social and Emotional Development in Children and Adolescents knowledge path, family resource brief, school resource brief Suicide Prevention resource brief Adolescent Violence Prevention: Knowledge Path, 6th ed. (September 2010). (Updated: September 2011). Author: Susan Brune Lorenzo, M.L.S., MCH Library. Reviewers: Olivia K. Pickett, M.A., M.L.S., MCH Library; Lissa Pressfield, M.H.S., Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs. Editor: Ruth Barzel, M.A., MCH Library.

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