Session: Implications of the Built Environment of Neighborhoods and Schools for the Prevention of Youth Delinquency (Society for Prevention Research 21st Annual Meeting)

A growing body of evidence links deleterious environmental conditions with negative health outcomes for youth. For certain outcomes (e.g., obesity, lead, asthma), these findings have resulted in preventive interventions that improve the built environment by minimizing exposure or by improving opportunities for health-promoting behaviors. Theories such as social disorganization theory (Sampson et al., 1997; Shaw & McKay, 1969) and Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (Crowe, 1991) have suggested that these strategies may be effective for preventing youth involvement in violence and alcohol and drug use. For example, high amounts of disorder may interfere with the formation of collective efficacy and the ability to enforce norms of behavior.  This in turn may influence youth’s perception that delinquent behaviors are acceptable as well as increase their opportunities to engage in these negative behaviors. However, more research using objective validated measures is needed to provide empirical support for these hypotheses. Additionally, information is needed in the multiple built environments (i.e. neighborhoods and schools) with which youth interact. 

The proposed symposium examines the influence of the built environment of both neighborhoods and schools on youth delinquency. Each of the papers presented uses an objective measure to rigorously assess multiple aspects and instances of the built environment and opportunities for preventive interventions. The first paper uses a well-validated, structured assessment of the neighborhood environment, the Neighborhood Inventory for Environmental Typography (NIfETY) to identify environmental interventions important for improving youth outcomes including risk-taking propensity. The second paper highlights risks associated with exposure to alcohol outlets on elementary students’ route to school using geocoded data. The final paper presents the validation of a new objective measure of the school environment, the School Assessment for Environmental Typography (SAfETy), and its associations with youth engagement in delinquent behaviors. All three papers will emphasize implications for preventative interventions including policy changes, focusing on opportunities to minimize exposure and encourage health-promoting behaviors. The authors will also describe some of the methodological challenges associated with administering real-time objective measures of the neighborhood and school environment. A discussant with experience in both assessing the neighborhood and school environment’s influence on youth involvement in delinquency will highlight key findings and unique strengths of the three papers.  This will facilitate a discussion of the needed future directions in research as well as implications for preventative interventions to include the built environment.