Youth violence - Developmental pathways and prevention challenges

Youth violence is an important public health problem. During the latter hal f of the 1980s and early 1990s, the United States witnessed unprecedented l evels of violence among the nation's youths. Homicide remains one of the le ading causes of death for young people aged 10 to 24 years. This paper revi ews the major trends in homicide victimization and perpetration among youth s during the past decade, the developmental pathways of delinquent and viol ent behavior and the context in which these behaviors occur, and some of th e challenges associated with disrupting these pathways and preventing viole nce. Previous research reveals that multiple pathways lead toward violence and delinquency. Predicting which pathway a youth will follow, or if one wi ll be followed at all, depends to some extent on a host of other biological , psychosocial, and environmental factors present as young people transitio n from early childhood to adolescence to early adulthood. Preventing violen ce requires a comprehensive approach that takes into account developmental needs, tasks, and supports.