Exploring Community Stress and Empowerment Among Stakeholders and Youth in an Urban Community

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-18-2019

Journal / Book Title

Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment

Abstract

Community-level stress, such as pervasive substance abuse and violence, can yield negative health and mental heath outcomes for youth from disadvantaged communities. Community empowerment is a process whereby community members work together to increase control in their community. This qualitative inquiry analyzed in-depth interviews with adult stakeholders (n = 17) as well as focus group interviews with token youth (n = 85) to explore perceptions of community stress and empowerment in one disadvantaged locale. Each of the 102 total participants helped interrogate the research questions: What does it mean to live in a stressed community? How might youth and adults perceive themselves capable of impacting a stressed community’s quality of life? Emergent themes, which include a nod to the utility of coalition building, are explored. Implications for policy, practice, and future research are also discussed.

DOI

10.1080/10911359.2019.1592734

Published Citation

Forenza, B., Lardier Jr, D. T., Reid, R. J., Garcia-Reid, P., & Bermea, A. (2019). Exploring community stress and empowerment among stakeholders and youth in an urban community. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 29(6), 705-721.

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