Ties to culture may protect Latino teens from violence

ANN ARBOR-Latino kids who spend unstructured leisure time with friends, participate in certain nonschool activities and have part-time jobs may encounter high levels of violence in their communities. But when teens adhere to the cultural value of "familismo," their exposure to violence is low, according to a new University of Michigan study. The study examines protective and risk factors that may affect teens' community violence exposure after school, such as part-time employment, unstructured time with friends, extracurricular activities and family. Unstructured time might involve time spent in public outdoor places rather than at home. Research indicates that unstructured time with peers is linked to behavioral and academic problems for low-income teens in dangerous neighborhoods. "Hanging out in the neighborhood is also likely to coincide with a lack of supervision by parents and other adults," said Traci Kennedy, a doctoral candidate in clinical psychology and the study's lead author. Consequently, both the location and the lack of structure or supervision are likely to increase youths' risks for violence exposure, the study shows.