Richard Spano

Social Guardianship and Social Isolation: An Application and Extension of Lifestyle/Routine Activities Theory to Rural Adolescents.

Although the overall crime rate dropped between 1993 and 2000, both adolescent violence and violent crime in rural areas has been on the rise. However, little research has been conducted on the determinants of rural violence using targeted regional samples of rural youth. This study examines the applicability of lifestyle/routine activities (RA) theory to a large sample of rural adolescents from Alabama. Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicate that: (1) social guardianship reduces the risk of assault and robbery victimization; (2) blacks are less likely to be assault and robbery victims; and (3) males are less likely to be robbery victims. Social isolation at the individual level is also a strong risk factor for both robbery and assault victimization. The theoretical implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are also discussed.

Gang Membership, Gun Carrying, and Employment: Applying Routine Activities Theory to Explain Violent Victimization Among Inner City, Minority Youth Living in Extreme Poverty∗

Conceptual inconsistencies in routine activities theory are illustrated by demonstrating how gang membership, gun carrying, and employment can be categorized as both risk and protective factors in a high‐poverty context. Two waves of longitudinal data from a high‐poverty sample of African American youth were used to examine the determinants of victimization risk. Bivariate analyses indicated that gang membership, gun carrying, and employment status are significant risk factors for violent victimization, but these effects were mediated by measures of lifestyles (e.g., demographic and family factors, deviant lifestyles) included as controls in the full multivariate model. In other words, the strong positive relationship between gang membership and gun carrying found in previous studies may be due to model misspecification and/or the lack of research on high‐poverty samples of inner city youth from the Deep South. Additional logistic regression analyses also indicate that the number of hours employed per week (but not employment status) is a risk factor for violent victimization. Finally, the theoretical implications of these findings for routine activities theory are discussed.

Does parenting mediate the effects of exposure to violence on violent behavior? An ecological-transactional model of community violence

Three waves of longitudinal data from a high poverty sample of 1544 African American youth were used to test an ecological-transactional model of violence. SEM analyses were conducted to determine whether parenting (Time 2) mediated the effects of exposure to violence (Time 1) on violent behaviors (Time 3). Findings supported the specified model. Multigroup SEM analyses indicated that neither family structure nor developmental stage (early versus middle/late adolescence) moderated these effects. However, exposure to violence had a larger effect on violent behaviors in female versus male youth, although the difference was simply in magnitude, not direction. A final model that predicted change scores also provided support for the hypothesized ecological-transactional model of violence.

Are Chronic Exposure To Violence and Chronic Violent Behavior Closely Related Developmental Processes During Adolescence

Five waves of longitudinal data from a sample of minority youth living in extreme poverty were used to examine the impact of chronic exposure to violence on chronic violent behavior. Given the rapid rate of developmental change during adolescence and the lack of multiyear studies of exposure to violence, semiparametric group-based modeling was used to identify trajectories of chronic exposure to violence (7% of youth), chronic violent victimization (9% of youth), chronic vicarious victimization (39% of youth), and chronic violent behavior (12% of youth). The multivariate findings revealed that (a) youth with chronic exposure to violence were 3,150% (or 31.5 times) more likely to engage in chronic violent behavior and (b) chronic vicarious victimization was a significant predictor of chronic violent behavior, after controlling for the effects of chronic violent victimization. The theoretical and policy implications of these findings as well as areas for future research are discussed.

Observer Behavior as a Potential Source of Reactivity: Describing and Quantifying Observer Effects in a Large-Scale Observational Study of Police

One theme in the field research literature is that observer effects (or observer behavior) can act as a source of bias in observational data. This article uses both descriptive and quantitative data on reactivity from a large scale observational study of police to (1) describe and categorize instances of observer effects (in the form of observers helping officers), (2) specify hypothesized effects between rapport and observer effects, and (3) assess the impact of observer effects on patrol officer arrest and use of force behavior. Descriptive accounts indicate that observer behavior at times significantly altered the course of events. In addition, bivariate analyses suggest that observer effects are likely officer initiated rather than observer initiated. Finally, both bivariate and multivariate analyses revealed that observer effects are significant predictors of use of force but not arrest behavior net of a variety of controls for acclimation between officer and observer over the course of fieldwork, officer work orientation, suspect characteristics, and situational factors. The implications of these findings for future research are discussed.

Disentangling the Effects of Violent Victimization, Violent Behavior, and Gun Carrying for Minority Inner-City Youth Living in Extreme Poverty

Two waves of longitudinal data were used to examine the sequencing between violent victimization, violent behavior, and gun carrying in a high-poverty sample of African American youth. Multivariate logistic regression results indicated that violent victimization T1 and violent behavior T1 increased the likelihood of initiation of gun carrying T2 when examined separately (by 132% and 91%, respectively). However, only violent victimization T1 was a significant predictor of initiation of gun carrying T2 after controlling for violent behavior T1. More nuanced analyses uncovered no significant difference in the likelihood of initiating gun carrying when comparing offensive versus defensive gun carriers. The theoretical and policy implications of these findings are also discussed.

Specifying the Role of Exposure to Violence and Violent Behavior on Initiation of Gun Carrying: A Longitudinal Test of Three Models of Youth Gun Carrying

Two waves of longitudinal data from 1,049 African American youth living in extreme poverty are used to examine the impact of exposure to violence (Time 1) and violent behavior (Time 1) on first time gun carrying (Time 2). Multivariate logistic regression results indicate that (a) violent behavior (Time 1) increased the likelihood of initiation of gun carrying (Time 2) by 76% after controlling for exposure to violence at Time 1, which is consistent with the stepping stone model of youth gun carrying, and (b) youth who were both exposed to violence at Time 1 and engaged in violent behavior at Time 1 were more than 2.5 times more likely to initiate gun carrying at Time 2 compared to youth who had neither of these characteristics, which supports the cumulative risk model of youth gun carrying. The authors discuss the implications of these findings in clarifying the role of violence in the community on youth gun carrying and the primary prevention of youth gun violence. Language: enTwo waves of longitudinal data from 1,049 African American youth living in extreme poverty are used to examine the impact of exposure to violence (Time 1) and violent behavior (Time 1) on first time gun carrying (Time 2). Multivariate logistic regression results indicate that (a) violent behavior (Time 1) increased the likelihood of initiation of gun carrying (Time 2) by 76% after controlling for exposure to violence at Time 1, which is consistent with the stepping stone model of youth gun carrying, and (b) youth who were both exposed to violence at Time 1 and engaged in violent behavior at Time 1 were more than 2.5 times more likely to initiate gun carrying at Time 2 compared to youth who had neither of these characteristics, which supports the cumulative risk model of youth gun carrying. The authors discuss the implications of these findings in clarifying the role of violence in the community on youth gun carrying and the primary prevention of youth gun violence.

Does Parenting Shield Youth From Exposure to Violence During Adolescence? A 5-Year Longitudinal Test in a High-Poverty Sample of Minority Youth

Five waves of longitudinal data collected from 349 African American youth living in extreme poverty were used to determine if parental monitoring shielded youth from exposure to violence during adolescence. Semiparametric group— based modeling was used to identify trajectories of parental monitoring and exposure to violence from T1 to T5. Results from these analyses revealed (a) about 52% of youth had a trajectory of hypervigilant parental monitoring and (b) two out of the five distinct trajectories of exposure to violence were low and/or declining over the 5-year time period. Multivariate findings indicated that (a) youth with a trajectory of hypervigilant parenting were 109% more likely to have middle-declining exposure to violence, but hypervigilant parenting was unrelated to stable and low exposure to violence T1 to T5. The theoretical and policy implications of these findings as well as areas for future research are also discussed.

The Impact of Exposure To Violence On a Trajectory of (Declining) Parental Monitoring A Partial Test of the Ecological—Transactional Model of Community Violence

Five waves of longitudinal data collected from 348 African American youth living in extreme poverty are used to examine the impact of exposure to violence on parenting over time. Semiparametric group-based modeling is used to identify trajectories of parental monitoring and exposure to violence from Time 1 (T1) to Time 5 (T5). Results indicate that for youth (a) 48% had a trajectory of declining parental monitoring and (b) 7% had sharply increasing exposure to violence from T1 to T5. Multivariate findings are consistent with the ecological—transactional model of community violence. Exposure to violence T1 was a precursor of a trajectory of declining parental monitoring T1 to T5. Youth with a trajectory of stable and sharply increasing exposure to violence were more than 200% more likely to have declining parental monitoring T1 to T5. The theoretical implications of these findings as well as areas for future research are also discussed.

Is the Nexus of Gang Membership, Exposure to Violence, and Violent Behavior a Key Determinant of First Time Gun Carrying for Urban Minority Youth?

Two waves of longitudinal data from a high-poverty sample of minority youth living in extreme poverty was used to determine if the nexus (or intersection) of gang membership T1, exposure to violence T1, and violent behavior T1 is a precursor of first time gun carrying T2. The findings indicated a significant amount of overlap between gang membership, exposure to violence, and violent behavior. The multivariate findings also revealed that: (1) the effect of exposure to violence T1 on initiation of gun carrying T2 became non-significant after controlling for gang membership T1 and violent behavior T1; and (2) only 1.8% of youth were part of the nexus of gang membership T1, exposure to violence T1, and violent behavior T1, but they were 665% more likely to initiate gun carrying T2. The theoretical and policy implications of the findings for the prevention of youth gun violence as well as areas for future research are also discussed.