Children’s Exposure to Community Violence: Following a Path from Concern to Research to Action

The antecedents and current progress of an ongoing program of research on the nature, extent, and consequences of children's direct and indirect exposure to violent events and settings are discussed.

Abstract

This paper discusses the antecedents and current progress of an ongoing program of research on the nature, extent, and consequences of children's direct and indirect exposure to violent events and settings. Involvement in such research has sensitized the authors to difficult ethical and methodological challenges that, we believe, merit consideration by mental health scientists and policy markers. Resolution of those challenges has substantive implications for both subsequent research and the application of resultant findings.