Dataset Information

Distress level and daily functioning problems attributed to firearm victimization: sociodemographic-specific responses.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to estimate the effect of firearm involvement during violent victimization on the level of distress experienced and daily functioning within sociodemographic subgroups.

Methods

We used cross-sectional data from the National Crime Victimization Survey (n = 5698) and Targeted Maximum Likelihood Estimation. Sociodemographic subgroups were defined by age, race, sex, and socioeconomic position. Outcomes included experiencing the victimization as severely distressing and problems in the workplace or at school, or with peers or family.

Results

Among people victimized with a firearm, nearly 40% experienced the victimization as severely distressing and 28% reported daily functioning problems as a result of the victimization, compared with 25% and 27% of those victimized without a firearm. In most of the subgroups examined, a greater proportion of people described the event as severely distressing when a firearm was involved in the victimization, ranging up to 19 percentage points higher among women and among black respondents (95% CI for women = 10%-28%; for blacks = 6%-31%).

Conclusions

Our findings suggest an almost universal negative response to firearm involvement during a violent victimization as compared with violent victimizations involving other or no weapons. These findings highlight the need for efforts by medical and mental health practitioners to address the potential sequelae of experiencing severe distress during a firearm victimization.

SUBMITTER: Kagawa RMC

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7027367 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Distress level and daily functioning problems attributed to firearm victimization: sociodemographic-specific responses.

Kagawa Rose M C RMC Pear Veronica A VA Rudolph Kara E KE Keyes Katherine M KM Cerdá Magdalena M Wintemute Garen J GJ

Annals of epidemiology 20191206

<h4>Purpose</h4>The purpose of this study was to estimate the effect of firearm involvement during violent victimization on the level of distress experienced and daily functioning within sociodemographic subgroups.<h4>Methods</h4>We used cross-sectional data from the National Crime Victimization Survey (n = 5698) and Targeted Maximum Likelihood Estimation. Sociodemographic subgroups were defined by age, race, sex, and socioeconomic position. Outcomes included experiencing the victimization as se ...[more]

PMID: 31932142

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Project description:ImportancePreventing firearm violence requires understanding its antecedents. Yet no comprehensive longitudinal study has examined how involvement with firearms during adolescence-use, access, and victimization (defined as threatened with a weapon or gunshot injury)-is associated with the perpetration of firearm violence in adulthood.ObjectiveTo examine the association between firearm involvement during adolescence and subsequent firearm perpetration and ownership in adulthood among youth involved in the juvenile justice system.Design, setting, and participantsThis cohort study analyzed interview responses of 1829 randomly selected participants as part of the Northwestern Juvenile Project, a longitudinal study of health needs and outcomes of youth sampled from a temporary juvenile detention center in a large US city. Youth aged 10 to 18 years were interviewed in detention from November 1995 through June 1998. Participants were reinterviewed up to 13 times over 16 years through February 2015, for a total of 17 776 interviews. The sample was stratified by sex, race/ethnicity, age, and legal status (juvenile or adult court). Data were analyzed from April 2017, when data preparation began, through November 2020.ExposuresFirearm involvement during adolescence: use (ie, threaten, shoot), access (ownership, ease of access, firearm in household, membership in gang that carries firearms), and victimization (gunshot injury, threatened with a weapon).Main outcomes and measuresFirearm involvement during adulthood: perpetration of firearm violence (ie, threatening with or using a firearm) and firearm ownership.ResultsAmong the 1829 participants, 1388 had a 16-year follow-up interview: 860 males, 528 females; 809 were African American, 203 were non-Hispanic White; 374 were Hispanic; and 2 were other race/ethnicity; median (interquartile range) age of 32 (30-32) years. Eighty-five percent of males and 63.2% of females were involved with firearms as adolescents. Compared with females, males had significantly higher odds of every type of involvement except having a firearm in the home. In adulthood, 41.3% of males and 10.5% of females perpetrated firearm violence. Adolescents who had been threatened with a weapon or injured by firearms had 3.1 (95% CI, 2.0-4.9) and 2.4 (95% CI, 1.2-4.9) times the odds of perpetrating violence during adulthood. Similar associations were found for firearm ownership.Conclusions and relevanceInvolvement with firearms during adolescence-including victimization-is a significant risk factor for firearm perpetration and ownership during adulthood.

Project description:BackgroundSymptoms of anxiety and depression are common mental health problems in children and are often referred to as internalizing symptoms. Youth with such symptoms are at greater risk for poor academic achievement, school non-completion, and future mental health problems, all of which, lead to public health consequences and costs to society. The aim of the current study was to investigate associations between young school children's internalizing symptoms and school functioning, as assessed separately by the teachers and the children.MethodsThis study is a cross-sectional study including children (N = 750. 58% girls) from the ages of 8-12 years with elevated levels of self-reported symptoms of anxiety (MASC-C) and/or depression (SMFQ). Teachers reported the academic achievement, school adaptation (TRF) and internalizing symptoms (BPM-T) of the children. Associations were analyzed using linear regression analyses.ResultsBoth teacher-reported internalizing symptoms and children's self-reported depressive symptoms were associated with poor academic achievement and school adaptation, while self-reported symptoms of anxiety were not. Symptoms of depression as assessed by the children were associated with teacher-rated internalizing symptoms, while self-reported symptoms of anxiety were not.ConclusionWe found negative associations between school functioning and internalizing symptoms, as assessed by both the teachers and the children. The dual findings strengthen the validity of these relationships. Thus, prevention of depressive and anxiety symptoms in children may lead to positive changes in school domains such as academic achievement and school adaptation. We also identified a negative association between teacher-rated internalizing symptoms and children's self-report of depressive symptoms, indicating that teachers may have difficulties recognizing children with these symptoms.Trial registrationClinical Trials NCT02340637, Registered on June 12, 2014, Retrospectively registered.

Dataset Information

Distress level and daily functioning problems attributed to firearm victimization: sociodemographic-specific responses.

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Distress level and daily functioning problems attributed to firearm victimization: sociodemographic-specific responses.

Similar Datasets

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