Pathways of Inequality: Impact of Community Violence Exposure on Internalizing Behavior Among African American, Latinx, and White Youth

While substantial efforts have been made to learn more about youth community violence exposure (CVE) and its wide-ranging impact, less is known about the effects of different types of CVE on mental health outcomes, particularly internalizing behavior, across contextual factors. The current study examines types of CVE (i.e., hearing/learning about, witnessing, and victimization) across gender, age, socioeconomic status (SES), and racial and ethnic group (White, African American/Black, and Latinx) in a diverse sample of youth seeking treatment at a university-based pediatric anxiety clinic. Older age (adolescence), male gender, and lower SES were associated with increased rates of CVE. Victimization was positively and significantly correlated with hearing reports of violence against familiars but negatively associated with hearing reports of violence against strangers, suggesting that youth who are victimized often have family or close friends who are also victims of violence, and those who hear about violence against strangers may be safe from victimization in some regards. Results from this study suggest that Black youth, in comparison to White youth, may experience more internalizing symptoms as the result of indirect CVE. For those who witnessed violence against people they know, Latinx youth reported lower levels of anxiety compared to both Black and White youth. In light of these results, potential risk and protective factors associated with CVE and presenting symptoms are discussed.