If you have issues viewing or accessing this file contact us at NCJRS.gov. U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Justice Preventing Interpersonal Violence Among Youth An Introduction to School, Community, and Mass Media Strategies 150484 U.S. Department of Justice National Institute of Justice ~ This document has been reproduced exactly as received from the person or organization originating it. Points of view or opinions stated in CO this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the National Institute of Justice. Permission to reproduce this .n'lFtl material has been ~ granted by Pl ill] i c ]"bma j n/O.TP/NIJ o U.S. IBpartment of Justice to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS). l!) Further reproduction outside of the NCJRS system requires permission of the _owner. About the National Institute of Justice The National Institute of Justice (NIJ), a component of the The research and development program that resulted in Office ofJustice Programs, is the research and development the creation of police body armor that has meant the agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. NIJ was estab­ difference between life and death to hundreds of police lished to prevent and reduce crime and to improve the officers. criminal justice system. Specific mandates established by Congress in the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Pioneering scientific advances such as the research and Act of 1968, as amended, and the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of development of DNA analysis to positively identify 1988 direct the National Institute of Justice to: suspects and eliminate the innocent from suspicion. Sponsor special projects, and research and develop­ The evaluation of innovative justice programs to deter­ ment programs that will improve and strengthen the mine what works, including drug enforcement, com­ criminal justice system and reduce or prevent crime. munity policing, community anti-drug initiatives, pros­ ecution of complex drug cases, drug testing throughout Conduct national demonstration projects that employ the criminal justice system, and user accountability innovative or promising approaches for improving programs. criminal justice. Creation of a corrections information-sharing system Develop new technologies to fight crime and improve that enables State and local officials to exchange more criminal justice. efficient and cost-effective concepts and techn iques for planning, financing, and constructing new prisons and Evaluate the effectiveness of criminal justice pro­ jails. grams and identify programs that promise to be suc­ cessful if continued or repeated. Operation of the world's largest criminal justice infor­ mation clearinghouse, a resource used by State and Recommend actions that can be taken by Federal, State, local officials across the Nation and by criminal justice and local governments as well as by private organiza­ agencies in foreign countries. tions to improve criminal justice. Carry out research on criminal behavior. The Institute Director, who is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, establishes the Institute's Develop new methods ofcrime prevention and reduc­ objectives, guided by the priorities of the Office of Justice tion of crime and delinquency. Programs, the Department of Justice, and the needs of the criminal justice field. The Institute actively solicits the The National Institute of Justice has a long history of views ofcriminaljustice professionals to identify their most accomplishments, including the following: critical problems. Dedicated to the priorities of Federal, State, and local criminal justice agencies, research and Basic research on career criminals that led to develop­ development at the National Institute of Justice continues to ment ofspecial police and prosecutor units to deal with search for answers to what works and why in the Nation's repeat offenders. war on drugs and crime. Research that confirmed the link between drugs and CrIme. U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Justice DEC ]l tB 1994 - Preventing Interpersonal Violence Among Youth An Introduction to School, Community, and Mass Media Strategies by William DeJong, Ph.D. Department of Health and Social Behavior Harvard School of Public Health November 1994 Issues and Practices in Criminal Justice is a publication series of the National Institute of Justice. Each report presents the program options and management issues in a topic area, based on a review of research and evaluation findings, operational experience, and expert opinion on the subject. The intent is to provide information to make informed choices in planning, implement­ ing, and improving programs and practice in criminal justice. National Institute of Justice Paul Ca&carano Assistant Director Marilyn Moses Program Monitor Advisory Panel Dr. Carl C. Bell Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith Community Mental Health Council Harvard School ofPubiic Health 8704 South Constance Avenue 677 Huntington Avenue Chicago, Illinois 60617 Boston, Massachusetts 02115 Renee Wilson-Brewer Dr. Felton J. Earls Education Development Center, Inc. Harvard School of Public Health 55 Chapel Street 677 Huntington A venue Newton, Massachusetts 02160 Boston, Massachusetts 02115 Dr. Kenneth Powell Division ofInjury Control Centers for Disease Control Atlanta, Georgia 30333 Prepared for the National Institute of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice, by Abt Associates Inc., under contract #OJP-89-C-009. Points of view or opinions stated in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. The National Institute of Justice is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the Office for Victims of Crime. ,5 .. Foreword As demonstrated by the Resolving Conflict Creatively Pro­ The hope of the National Institute ofJustice is that, inspired gram in New York City, the Boston Violence Prevention by the work described in this report, increasing numbers of Project, and the other school, community, and mass media police and other criminal justice professionals will join with efforts described in this Issues and Practices report, a key to teachers, youth workers, clergy, and other community lead­ violence prevention among youth is education-to teach ers to explore how they might contribute to preventing young people howto manage conflict and channel their anger violence among youth, whether it be contributing to ongoing into constructive problem solving, rather than turning to efforts or taking the lead in establishing new programs. violence as their first response. To change til eclimate ofviolence that pervades our Nation's cities; to I.:lnge the attitudes, beliefs, and expectations that feed that climate; and to teach young people how to resolve Jeremy Travis conflict peacefully, all elements ofour communities must be Director involved. National Institute of Justice Foreword iii Acknowlec~gements There are many people whose help made this report possible. shocked by the nightly carnage that she saw, much of it I thank Stu Cohen, Theodore P. Cross, Cheryl Vince­ caused by shootings, knifings, and other forms of violence. Whitman, and Renee Wilson-Brewer ofEducation Develop­ ment Center and Avron Spiro, III, for their comments on the One night, when a young patient she had just treated told her study of student beliefs, attitudes, and behavior reported in to be ready for the next guy, the one he would be sending to chapter 1. I am especially grateful to the school administra­ the ER, she suddenly realized that, as a physician, she had to tors, teachers, and students who made that research possible. do much more about the problem of violence than patch kids up and send them back on the streets. 1thank Linda Lantieri, Tom Roderick, Michael Hirschhorn, and their staffs, as well as the student mediators, teachers, From that insight, her life's work-shaping and giving voice and s~hool principals who so graciously accommodated my to the public health community's efforts to prevent vio­ site '. isit to the Resolving Conflict Creatively Program lence-was launched. First as a co-founder of the Health (RCCP). Their enthusiastic dedication proves that "RCCP is Promotion Center for Urban Youth in Boston's Department ~ot just a program, it's a way of life:' of Health lind Hospitals, then as commissioner ofthe Massa­ chusetts Department ofPublic Health, and now as a professor I am also grateful to Linda Hudson and her staff for their at the Harvard School of Public Health, Dr. Prothrow-Stith hospitality during my site visit to the Boston Violence has been a leader in the national movement to define violence Prevention Project (VPP) and Dr. Alice Hausman of Temple as a public health issue and to use public health strategies for University for sharing early drafts of her evaluation of the its prevention. VPP. I dedicate this Issues tlnd Practices report to Dr. Prothrow­ I thank Marilyn Moses of the National Institute of Justice Stitt both to acknowledge her pioneering work and to thank (NIJ) and Cathy C0"l!Y and Jeff Roth of Abt Associates for her for the inspiration she has provided to so many of us who their support and guidance. Their constructive criticism and care about our Nation's health. gentle prodding was greatly appreciated,