Download or read book Exposure to Violence, Coping and Psychological and Behavioral Outcomes Among Urban, Low-income Adolescents written by Anna L. Parnes and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 118 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Limited research has examined the influence of coping on psychological and behavioral outcomes among urban low-income adolescents, particularly those exposed to violence. This study examined coping strategies, including active, distraction, support-seeking and avoidant coping, as moderators and partial mediators of the relations between exposure to violence and internalizing symptoms (anxiety/depression) and externalizing behaviors (prosocial behavior and aggression). These relations were examined based on data that were collected at the beginning and end of the school year as part of an evaluation of a school-based violence prevention program. Participants were 313 urban, low-income, African American fifth through eight grade students. Exposure to violence was negatively associated with active coping. Active coping was negatively associated with aggression, and avoidant coping was positively associated with anxiety/depression. Prosocial behavior was not associated with coping. The coping strategies did not moderate the relations between exposure to violence and longitudinal outcomes, taking into account initial outcomes; however, there were some significant cross-sectional moderational findings. Specifically, distracting action coping moderated the relation between exposure to violence and anxiety/depression and had a protective-reactive effect on this relation. Direct problem solving coping moderated the relation between exposure to violence and aggression, such that direct problem solving had a protective effect as exposure to violence increased. Structural equation modeling revealed that exposure to violence was positively associated with anxiety/depression, which predicted the use of cognitive coping strategies (cognitive avoidance and seeking understanding), and seeking understanding perpetuated anxiety/depression. In another model, exposure to violence predicted aggression, and avoidant action coping was negatively associated with exposure to violence and aggression. Overall, it appears that avoidant action and direct problem solving coping represent protective factors against aggression for adolescents exposed to violence, whereas seeking understanding and distraction action coping represent risk factors for anxiety/depression. It is likely that the complexity of coping processes may explain why longitudinal analyses that examined coping as a moderator were not significant. Nonetheless, results have implications for prevention/intervention, targeting coping skill development and violence prevention. Further longitudinal study of relations between exposure to violence, coping and outcomes among urban, low-income adolescents is needed.