Violence, Coping, and Mental Health in a Community Sample of Adolescents By: Daniel J. Flannery, Mark I. Singer, and Kelly L. Wester Flannery, D. J., Singer, M. I., & Wester, K. L. (2003). Violence, coping, and mental health in a community sample of adolescents. Violence and Victims, 18, 403-418. Made available courtesy of Springer Verlag: The original publication is available at http://www.springerlink.com ***Reprinted with permission. No further reproduction is authorized without written permission from Springer Verlag. This version of the document is not the version of record. Figures and/or pictures may be missing from this format of the document.*** Abstract: The current study examined the coping strategies, exposure to violence and psychological trauma symptoms of violent adolescents compared to less violent and nonviolent adolescents in a community sample. An anonymous self-report questionnaire was administered to students in six public high schools (grades 9–12). The 10% most violent adolescents were identified and compared to their less violent and nonviolent peers. A total of 3724 students represented 68% of adolescents in all targeted schools. Ages ranged from 14 to 19 years; 52% were female; and 35% were African-American, 34% Caucasian and 23% Hispanic. Analyses revealed that violent adolescents compared to their less violent and nonviolent peers employed more maladaptive coping strategies, were exposed to higher levels of violence and reported higher clinical levels of psychological trauma symptoms. Maladaptive coping was also significantly associated with psychological trauma symptoms and violent behavior, even after controlling for the influence of demographic factors. The findings support the importance of appropriate identification, assessment and referral services for adolescents in nonclinical settings, and the role that coping strategies play in contributing to adolescent mental health and well-being. Keywords: mental health; coping strategies; violence; adolescents Article: Adolescents are regularly exposed to high levels of violence at home, at school, and in their neighborhoods (Lorion & Saltzman, 1993; Richters & Martinez, 1993; Singer, Anglin, Song, & Lunghofer, 1995). High levels of exposure to violence and victimization have been consistently related to posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and other mental health problems like increased levels of anger, anxiety, and depression (Breslau, Daves, Andreski, & Peterson, 1991; Overstreet & Braun, 2000; Schwab-Stone et al., 1995). How adolescents cope with violence and other stressful events can either facilitate positive change into adulthood or contribute to later problem behavior and poor mental health (Rice, Herman, & Petersen, 1993). Compared to their peers, violent adolescents are at particular risk of being exposed to higher rates of violence and victimization, and to experience associated behavior and emotional problems (Finkelhor, 1995; Pynoos & Eth, 1985). The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between exposure to violence, coping strategies, and mental health and violence among a community sample of violent adolescents compared to their nonviolent peers. Coping has been defined as a set of behaviors and cognitions that allow a person to avoid, minimize, or tolerate stressful events (Plancherel & Bolognini, 1995), and coping behaviors can be characterized as either positive or negative (Rutter, 1990). Adolescents who endorse more positive, prosocial coping strategies tend to build and maintain supportive social relationships, meet their individual needs, and may be more resilient (Earls, 1994; Fraser, 1996), characteristics which reduce adolescent risk for engaging in problem behavior (Blum et al., 2000; Resnick, Bearman, & Blum, 1998). Prosocial coping strategies have also been shown to insure survival, reduce stress, stimulate higher mental processes, and reinforce social skills (Blechman, Dumas, & Prinz, 1994). Chronic exposure to violence and victimization from violence is more likely to contribute to the use of negative or maladaptive coping strategies. For example, chronic exposure to and victimization by violence have been shown to contribute to a combination of asocial (internalizing, depression) and antisocial (externalizing,