New Study Exploring Adolescent-Adult Connections in Neighborhoods Impacted by Community Violence

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Fenner, M., Wilson, T., Riley, A., & Culyba, A. J. (2024). Exploring adolescent-adult connections, coping, and safety among minoritized youth in neighborhoods impacted by community violence. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 34, 618–630. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12924

Introduction

Fenner and colleagues (2024) examine how minoritized youth in violence-impacted neighborhoods manage safety, and how trusted adults support (and sometimes shape) those strategies. Grounded in Bronfenbrenner’s socioecological model and Spencer’s phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory (PVEST), the study frames community violence as structurally patterned (e.g., racism, disinvestment) and relationally experienced, with adolescent–adult connections positioned as a key protective process.

Methods

The authors conducted semi-structured dyadic interviews with 32 youth (ages 13–21) and each youth’s self-identified key adult support in Pittsburgh (2019–2020). Interviews (45–60 minutes; mostly in-person) prioritized youths’ narratives first, included distress check-ins and resource referrals, and were thematically analyzed via iterative coding (Dedoose) with consensus resolution. Participant demographics were predominantly Black/African American; adult supports were largely parents and grandparents.

Results

Five thematic areas emerged:

  1. experiences with violence
  2. factors contributing to violence
  3. violence prevention strategies used by the participants
  4.  intergenerational transfer of knowledge regarding safety strategies
  5. vision for future programming to foster intergenerational support within the context of experiences with violence.

Discussion

The authors emphasize a central tension: strategies like isolation may reduce immediate risk yet increase longer-term psychosocial and health burdens. They argue for programming that is culturally affirming, community-grounded, and explicitly addresses racism-related threats while strengthening supportive networks; limitations include generalizability and underrepresentation of youth lacking adult supports.

Implications for mentoring programs

Mentoring should (a) integrate safety planning + coping with youth and caregivers, (b) counter isolation, (c) recruit natural mentors rooted in the community, and (d) use healing-centered, culturally responsive practices that acknowledge racism and violence exposure.

Read the full paper here.