Violence in rural communities: youth speak out!
BACKGROUND
The current available literature does not present the viewpoints of rural youths regarding the meaning of violence.


METHODS
A mixed method exploratory, descriptive study was conducted to generate information from rural youth about violence. The qualitative phase of the exploratory, descriptive study is reported here.


RESULTS
Interviews with fifty-two youth (20 males and 32 females), ranging in age from 11 to 19 years in grades 7-12 in the public school system were conducted in two rural communities. The participants initially defined violence as a physical act with intent to harm, but did not consider weapon carrying as an issue in their communities. They identified alcohol consumption as a trigger for violence and described planned fights that occurred away from school grounds. Physical fights were not limited to the male students. The youth openly stated that violence exists in rural communities and felt isolated from adults with regard to understanding the youths' experiences with violence.


CONCLUSIONS
It is important to generate information about violence directly from rural youth. Programs to reduce violence that include the youth are important to pursue.
University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. kulig@uleth.ca
Judith C
JC
Kulig
Barry L
BL
Hall
Ruth Grant
RG
Kalischuk
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000416:Alberta; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D012106:Research; D012424:Rural Population; D012737:Sex Factors; D012919:Social Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology