Community Environment, Deviance and Risky Health Behavior among High School Youth

• In Event: Examining Indicators of Emotional Well-Being in Underserved Subgroups and Communities of Youth

Abstract

The association between one’s community environment – including the community’s overall socioeconomic status and other social characteristics – and risky health behaviors is well-founded. Evidence also suggests that there is an association between deviant or criminal behavior, risky health behaviors, and poor health outcomes. When starting at a young age, these poor health outcomes are known to accumulate over the life course. However, the combined relationship between community environment, deviant behavior, and risky health behavior is less clear. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between community characteristics, deviant or criminal behavior, and risky health behaviors in a youth sample. This study uses data from Delaware’s 2023 High School Youth Risk Behavior survey in conjunction with community-level estimates from the 2023 American Community Survey to investigate these relationships, employing hierarchical linear modeling to discern the effect of community on deviant behavior, risky health behavior, and the relationship between the two.

Author

• David Borton, University of Delaware