Factors associated with urban youth and parent perceptions of the preventability of assault injury: An emergency department sample

A. Gatebe Kironji, Vanya Jones, Tina Cheng, Sarah Lindstrom Johnson, Joel A. Fein, Leticia Ryan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to identify factors associated with urban youth and parent's perception of the preventability of medically attended youth assault injuries to guide future violence prevention strategies. Methods: Assault-injured youth (n = 188; ages, 10-15 years; 60% male; 96% black) and their parents were recruited from 2 pediatric emergency departments in 2 cities. Mental health, injury severity, circumstances of injury, and family composition were some of the factors explored as crosssectional predictors of the perception of the preventability of youth assault injury. Separate models were developed using stepwise regression for youth and parents. Results: Sixty-eight (38%) youth and 123 parents (68%) reported that the injury was definitely preventable (x2 = 9.6250, P < 0.05). For youth, identifying themselves as the aggressor (odds ratio [OR], 0.23, 95%confidence interval [CI], 0.07-0.70) or having been hospitalized for psychiatric illness (OR, 0.21; 95% CI, 0.05-0.85) was associated with lower odds of perceiving their injury as preventable, while being under the care of a mental health professional (OR, 3.87; 95% CI, 1.21-12.39) was associated with higher odds. For parents, being in a household with grandparents (OR, 0.21; 95% CI, 0.04-0.99) or having a child with a learning disability (OR, 0.16; 95% CI, 0.05-0.57) was associated with lower odds of perceiving the injury as preventable. Conclusions: Several factors in youth and parents were identified as being associated with perception of preventability of injuries in this high-risk population of youth. Youth and parents identified different factors. In addition, although most parents reported that the assault injury sustained by their child was preventable, the opposite was true for youth perceptions. Future violence prevention programs should consider youth and parent perspectives and develop unique strategies to address both their needs.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)606-614
Number of pages9
JournalPediatric Emergency Care
Volume37
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 1 2021

Keywords

  • Assault injuries
  • Injury prevention
  • Intentional injuries
  • Youth violence

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
  • Emergency Medicine

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