Research on community violence exposure in the U.S. often considers parenting, especially for Black families, who are more likely to deal with violence exposure (Chen et al., 2016). However, there has been less attention to explicit community violence socialization (CVS). This investigation seeks to understand the content of CVS and examine the association of teen, parent, and community factors on CVS.

Data were collected from a national U.S. sample of 667 Black parents (M=39.28 years, SD=8.84; 49.9% male), with teens between the ages of 8 and 17 (M=12.62 years, SD=2.91; 57% male). Parents completed a survey, including measures on parent violence exposure (Victimization α=0.87; Witnessing α=0.91), and teen violence exposure (Victimization α=0.92; Witnessing α=0.95). Additionally, sense of community was utilized as a neighborhood factor (α=0.93). CVS dimensions include avoidance (α=0.71), reputation (α=0.77), and open communication (α=0.77).

Analyses indicated that parent victimization is negatively associated with avoidant (β=-0.12, p<0.01) and open communication socialization (β=-0.21, p<0.001). Teen victimization and witnessing is negatively associated with avoidant (β=-0.13, p<0.05; β=-0.11, p<0.05) and open communication socialization (β=-0.22, p<0.001; β=-0.16, p<0.001). Additionally, parents' sense of community is positively associated with avoidant (β=0.17, p<0.001), open communication (β=0.17, p<0.001), and reputation socialization (β=0.40, p<0.001). Overall, results suggest that the more exposure families experience, the less they utilize avoidance and open communication socialization, potentially due to desensitization (Kennedy & Ceballo, 2016). However, the higher parents rate sense of community, the more they utilize all three socialization dimensions. Future parent and community development implications and directions will be discussed.

Authors:
Margarett McBride, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States
Shauna Cooper, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States

About the Presenter(s)
McBride is a UNC-Chapel Hill Developmental Psychology doctoral candidate researching Black youth in neighborhood contexts. Passionate about art & storytelling, she crafts children's books like Dear Dad, Love Nelson & Dominique's Thrifted Treasures.

Connect on Linkedin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/margarettmcbride-989/

Additional website of interest
https://margarettmcbride.com/

See this presentation on the full schedule – Thursday Schedule

Bookmark