Youth violence refers to acts of violence committed by young people between the age of 10 and 24. It includes fighting, bullying, threats, sexual assault, homicide, and gang-related violence. Youth violence also includes tragedies like school shootings. This type of violence is more common than one would think. Over 1,000 young people are treated daily in emergency rooms for youth-related violence.1
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Violence is more likely to be committed by youth who have the following characteristics:
Youth violence is detrimental to development. Exposure to youth violence can lead to problems with decision-making and learning challenges. Also, violence can lead to low levels of interpersonal connection. Violence in childhood also leads to problems dealing with stress later in life. Violent youth often grow up to be violent adults. Additionally, adolescent violence can lead to smoking, substance abuse, obesity, high-risk behavior, depression, dropout, and suicide.
After-school programs are helpful in preventing violence among young people as they provide supervision for youth between the hours of three and six pm. During these hours, violent and criminal activity for young people is at its peak. By putting your child in these types of programs, you can ensure that they won’t be getting in trouble.
Youth violence can be difficult to address on your own without proper support. If you are concerned that your child may need help with their violent tendencies, consider Horizon Treatment Services.
We aim to help children get the support, care, and attention they need. Children and adults alike will benefit from learning more about ACEs, youth violence, and how these two topics may be connected. Creating lasting change in the lives of young people is the purpose behind our education and prevention programs.
1 https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/youthviolence/fastfact.html
2 https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/youth-violence
3 https://psycnet.apa.org/manuscript/2016-00913-003.pdf
4 https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/yv-technicalpackage.pdf
5 https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/aces/prevention.html
6 https://www.un.org/youthenvoy/2015/12/youth-violence-is-a-global-public-health-problem-who/