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. 2015 Apr;46(2):270-80.
doi: 10.1007/s10578-014-0466-2.

From violence exposure to development of sexual risk in low-income urban girls: the role of psychopathology

Helen W Wilson  1 , Laura Pettineo, Alexus Edmonds, Elizabeth A Goodman, Erin Emerson, Geri R Donenberg
Affiliations

From violence exposure to development of sexual risk in low-income urban girls: the role of psychopathology

Helen W Wilson et al. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev. 2015 Apr.

Abstract

This longitudinal study examined psychopathology as an explanatory mechanism linking childhood violence exposure (CVE) to sexual risk in 177 African American girls recruited from mental health clinics serving low-income communities in Chicago. Beginning at average age 14, girls completed five interviews over 2 years and a sixth assessment including trauma history. CVE reflected sexual, physical, or witnessed violence before age 12. Latent growth modeling accounted for developmental change across the six time points. Externalizing, but not internalizing, symptoms mediated the pathway from CVE to number of partners (indirect effect = .16, 95 % CIBCBS = .04-.29) and inconsistent condom use (indirect effect = .11, CIBCBS = .004-.21). Externalizing problems associated with CVE may help to explain its relationship with sexual risk in low-income, treatment-seeking African American girls. Behavioral interventions addressing aggression, impulsivity, and general risk-taking may be most effective in reducing sexual risk in this population.

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Figures

Fig.1
Fig.1
Mediator model linking childhood violence exposure (CVE) to sexual risk. Ovals represent latent growth factors. Solids lines represent significant paths, and dotted lines represent non-significant paths. Path estimates, above the lines, are linear regression coefficients. Age was included in the model with paths to all latent growth factors. *p ≤ .05 **p ≤ .01 ***p ≤ .001
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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