Changing Youth Narratives on Firearm Violence: A Community Collaborative Intervention - Phases 1 and 2

The overall design for the intervention evaluation is a two group, quasi-experimental community cohort design with a pretest (baseline) and multiple post-tests (follow-ups). A baseline survey and two follow-ups of 11-16-year-old youth and one parent/guardian per youth will be collected in the intervention and comparison communities, separately measuring a number of resilience, risk-related and demographic variables, hypothesized mediators/moderators linked to the intervention and its theory of change, intervention and related media exposure, and self-report outcomes. The comparison community (Marshall Heights) has been matched to the intervention community (Washington Highlands) as closely as possible on demographic and violence data (e.g., 95% African American in the intervention community, vs 90% African American in the comparison community; both communities have high poverty rates). A preliminary analysis will be conducted at each follow-up, with full analysis after the last follow-up. The research team will also collect firearm and related violence data as well as place-based aggregated data from designated community Census tracts for two years pre-intervention to the final intervention year for both communities, either monthly or quarterly, depending on whether there are enough samples in each period, in order to conduct interrupted time series analysis (ITSA) to assess the intervention effect on community-level outcomes.

Sampling Because there is no sampling frame from which to randomize, the research team is using a targeted snowball method through community partners (the CSC) who are familiar with most community families. Recruitment will occur through these interpersonal networks, using flyers with study information and eligibility requirements, prompting a snowball process where initial contacts recruit others. This method is more productive, facilitates the consent-assent process and recruitment of parents/guardians, and may avoid inherent safety concerns compared to sending staff to knock on doors for recruitment. Further, it will likely increase awareness and trust in the effort. It will also support a community cohort design, in which the same samples are followed up over time, with an improved ability to make causal inferences.

To increase rigor, the annual survey sample size proposed in the funding application has been increased from 200 youth/200 parents to 250 youth and the same number of parents (in both communities, for a total n of 500 youth, 500 parents each wave), in order to achieve enough power in the supplemental propensity score analyses, and for dose-response analyses. Along with that, the research team (including the community partners) will implement recruiting strategies to maximize direct youth participation in the intervention activities, to reach a goal of approximately 100-150 youth participating in the intervention activity tracks. These participants assessed at baseline will be followed up at 12 and 24 months after the baseline survey, separately.

Administration The baseline and follow-up surveys will be administered via mobile phone and tablets to a community sample of youth and parents/guardians. In the intervention community, data collection will not be limited to youth who participate in the alternative trajectory intervention activity tracks, because the goal is to assess intervention effects on community youth as a whole (including those directly participating in activities). However, to improve linkage between survey data and actual intervention participants, survey and intervention participant IDs will be linked by participant names, which will be maintained in a separate password-protected secure file and not appear on any survey or intervention process data. Variables will be created indicating dose to intervention exposure including participation in the intervention activity tracks and " and "media exposure". In this way, it will be possible to assess the dose-response effect among the youth in the intervention community. The survey and data storage will use REDCap software for security and efficiency.

Process and Qualitative Measures Extensive process data will be collected, e.g. attendance of each session and satisfaction with the session for each youth participating in the intervention activity tracks. In addition, each program year, 15 youth who are involved in any program activities will be randomly selected for a one-hour interview about experiences with program media/messaging and any perceived changes resulting from this exposure. The research team will also conduct interviews with two adults named by the youth as program-related influencers or mentors, to assess any changes mentors have seen in the youth, and perceptions of factors leading to the changes. These qualitative interviews (n=45) in Years 3-5 will be conducted and analyzed using the same methods outlined for the Phase One formative research.