title: Preparing for Disaster: a Cross-Sectional Study of Social Connection and Gun Violence.
abstract: Living in communities with persistent gun violence is associated with negative social, behavioral, and health outcomes, analogous to those of a natural disaster. Taking a disaster-preparedness approach may identify targets for community-based action to respond to on-going gun violence. We assessed the relevance of adapting a disaster-preparedness approach to gun violence and, specifically, the relationship between perceived collective efficacy, its subscales of social cohesion and informal social control, and exposure to gun violence. In 2014, we conducted a cross-sectional study using a community-based participatory research approach in two neighborhoods in New Haven, CT, with high violent crime rates. Participants were ≥18 years of age and English speaking. We measured exposure to gun violence by adapting the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods Exposure to Violence Scale. We examined the association between perceived collective efficacy, measured by the Sampson Collective Efficacy Scale, and exposure to gun violence using multivariate modeling. We obtained 153 surveys (51% response rate, 14% refusal rate, and 35% non-response rate). Ninety-five percent reported hearing gunfire, 58% had friend or family member killed by gun violence, and 33% were physically present during a shooting. In the fully adjusted model, one standard deviation higher perceived collective efficacy was associated with lower reported exposure to gun violence (β = -0.91, p < 0.001). We demonstrated that it is possible to activate community members and local officials to engage in gun violence research. A novel, community-based approach adapted from disaster-preparedness literature may be an effective framework for mitigating exposure to gun violence in communities with persistent gun violence.
authors.affiliation: Division of Critical Care, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 3333 Burnet Avenue, MLC 2005, Cincinnati, OH, 45229-3039, USA. Carley.Riley@cchmc.org.
authors.forename: Carley
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Riley
authors.affiliation: Section of General Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Brita
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.affiliation: Indian Health Service, Chinle Comprehensive Health Care Facility, Chinle, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: Nurit
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Harari
authors.affiliation: Center for Innovation to Implementation, VA Palo Alto Healthcare System, Palo Alto, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Anita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vashi
authors.affiliation: Trauma Injury Prevention, Community Outreach & Research Department, Yale-New Haven Hospital, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Pina
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Violano
authors.affiliation: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.|West River Community Resilience Team, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Greene
authors.affiliation: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Georgina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lucas
authors.affiliation: Transitions Clinic Network, New Haven, CT, USA.|Newhallville Community Resilience Team, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Jerry
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Smart
authors.affiliation: Newhallville Community Resilience Team, New Haven, CT, USA.|African American Affinity Group, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hines
authors.affiliation: West River Community Resilience Team, New Haven, CT, USA.|Project Longevity New Haven, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Stacy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Spell
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.affiliation: New Haven Family Alliance, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Tinney
authors.affiliation: Yale Center for Clinical Investigation, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Maurice
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.affiliation: Section of General Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.|Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.|Transitions Clinic Network, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Emily A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D055812:Community-Based Participatory Research; D003237:Connecticut; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004189:Disaster Planning / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005260:Female; D005389:Firearms; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010465:Perception; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012931:Social Environment; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014754:Violence; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Collective efficacy; Community resilience; Disaster; Gun violence; Social cohesion