Prevention
Conditions
Keywords
Firearm injury prevention, community based programs, youth advisory board
Brief summary
Over the past three decades, substantial resources have been devoted to developing youth violence prevention (YVP) programs. These programs have demonstrated positive effects on reducing aggression and related behaviors, firearm-specific risk factors were largely overlooked due to historical barriers to firearm research. This omission is concerning, as firearms are now the leading cause of injury and death among U.S. youth. Existing YVP strategies such as Emerging Leaders address general violence risk but do not directly target firearm-related risks or suicide prevention. There remains a critical gap in prevention strategies that integrate firearm-specific content while leveraging established program infrastructure.
Detailed description
This study will utilize youth participatory action research (YPAR) to co-develop the SAFE Futures intervention. The SAFE Futures Intervention is a grounded theory of firearm-related behavior change, and it has developed the SAFE Futures single-session intervention through focus groups and youth participatory action research. The study is designed to determine whether adding SAFE Futures to the Emerging Leaders program reduces risk factors associated with intentional firearm violence and suicide among high-risk youth. An advisory board of N=15 high-risk youth will be recruited, and data from focus groups will be analyzed using grounded theory methodology to examine attitudes, norms, personal agency, and contextual influences that promote or deter youth from engaging in risky and safe firearm behaviors (e.g., gun carrying, safe storage). The youth advisory board will use the resulting theory to develop SAFE Futures.
Interventions
OTHEREstablish an advisory board of high-risk youth
Fifteen high-risk youth will be recruited to establish an advisory board
OTHERFeedback and advice sessions
The youth advisory board will provide feedback and advice on the research questions, methodology, and interpretation of data through approximately fifteen, 60-minute meetings
OTHERYouth advisory board training
Youth will be trained in the social-ecological model and health behavior change theories, to better conceptualize the link between theory and intervention content, and to participate in the research process more actively.
OTHERSemi-structured focus groups
Will participate in a semi-structured focus group protocol developed in collaboration with the youth advisory board while incorporating knowledge from the empirical literature and health behavior change theories.
Sponsors
Virginia Commonwealth University
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Study design
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Intervention model description
Phase I will include focus groups youth interviews (n=30) and a youth advisory board (n=15)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
13 Years to 17 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Youth aged approximately 13-17 years. * Identified as at elevated risk for firearm-related injury (e.g., history of violent injury, referred by violence prevention programs). * Able to provide assent (and parental/guardian consent if under 18). * Sufficient proficiency in English to complete study procedures.
Exclusion criteria
* Significant cognitive impairment or developmental disability that would preclude comprehension of the intervention content or study procedures. * Current psychiatric or medical instability requiring immediate treatment or hospitalization. - Non-English speaking (due to limited resources for translation of study measures and intervention materials in this pilot).
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Grounded theory of firearm related change | Fifteen, 60-minute meetings (Baseline to the completion of the document) | A document that outlines the description of the attitudes, norms, personal agency, and contextual influences that promote or deter youth from engaging in risky and safe firearm behaviors (e.g., gun carrying, safe storage), designed by the Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) Advisory Board during their fifteen, 60-min meetings. |
| SAFE Futures content | After the development of the document and through the end of the focus group development of the Intervention manual | Intervention manual developed by the focus group interactions with the interviewees |
Countries
United States
Contacts
CONTACTKelly O'Connor
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORKelly O'Connor
Virginia Commonwealth University
Outcome results
None listed