Violence and Trauma Prevention Among Urban Adolescents
A special issue of Behavioral Sciences (ISSN 2076-328X).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 October 2026
Special Issue Editors
Interests: violence; risky firearm behaviors; traumatic stress; risk and protective mechanisms; exposure to community violence; resilience
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Youth living in urban communities are often exposed to multiple, intersecting sources of violence and trauma—including community violence, firearm violence, school bullying, domestic abuse, and systemic inequities—that shape their mental health, behavior, and developmental trajectories. This Special Issue aims to bring together rigorous quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research to advance our understanding of the risks and protective processes that drive violence, trauma exposure, and resilience in urban settings. We welcome contributions exploring the mechanisms through which violence and trauma influence adolescent adjustment (e.g., symptom trajectories and resilience pathways), as well as studies of preventive interventions (e.g., school-based programs, community mobilization, and policy‐driven approaches) tailored to youth in urban settings. Emphasis is placed on contextual factors (e.g., neighborhood disadvantage, racial/ethnic inequities, and peer networks), as well as on innovative methodological and analytic strategies (e.g., ecological momentary assessment, longitudinal designs, implementation science, and policy evaluation). We hope to catalyze interdisciplinary dialog among developmental scientists, public health researchers, school psychologists, community practitioners, and policy-makers in order to inform scalable, effective solutions that reduce trauma burden and interrupt cycles of violence among urban adolescents.
Dr. Kelly E. O’Connor
Dr. Colleen S. Walsh
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- urban youth
- youth violence
- community violence
- traumatic stress
- trauma exposure
- adverse childhood experiences
- resilience
- youth empowerment
- prevention science
- intervention
- implementation science
- health equity
- social ecology
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