Violence and Childhood in the Inner City

The contributors present various opinions about the causes of violence in American cities.

Joan McCord (Edited by)

9780521587204, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 13 October 1997

352 pages, 2 b/w illus. 3 tables
23 x 15.1 x 2.1 cm, 0.475 kg

"...recommended for anyone who is seriously concerned about the level of violence in the United States." Ronald Hinch, Canadian Journal of Urban Research

The contributors to this book believe that something can be done to make life in American cities safer, to make growing up in the urban ghettos less risky, and to reduce the violence that so often permeates urban childhoods. They consider why there is so much violence, why some people become violent and others do not, and why violence is more prevalent in some areas. Both biological and psychological characteristics of individuals are considered. The authors also discuss how the urban environment, especially the street culture, affects childhood development. They review a variety of intervention strategies, considering when it would be appropriate to use them and towards whom they should be targeted. Drawing upon ethnographic commentary, laboratory experiments, historical reviews, and program descriptions, this book presents a variety of opinions on the causes of urban violence and the changes necessary to reduce it.

1. Preface Joan McCord
2. Violence and the inner-city street code Elijah Anderson
3. The embeddedness of child and adolescent development: a community-level perspective on urban violence Robert J. Sampson
4. Placing American urban violence in context Joan McCord
5. Neuro-psychology, antisocial behavior, and neighborhood context Terrie E. Moffitt
6. Development of psychological mediators of violence in urban youth Ronald G. Slaby
7. Understanding and preventing child abuse in urban settings Felton Earls and Jacqueline Barnes
8. Intervening to prevent childhood aggression in the inner-city Nancy G. Guerra.

Subject Areas: Crime & criminology [JKV]