| Abstract: | The purpose of this study was to examine how extracurricular activities relate to rural youth violence. Gender differences were examined across all of the study variables. Self-report data were collected from 235 teenagers from a rural, ethnically diverse, Virginia community. Correlations revealed a significant inverse relationship between church activity and weapon carrying. Time in non-school clubs (B = .444, p = .000) was the best predictor of fighting frequency for boys. Time in non-school clubs (B = .315, p = .001) and time in religious activities (B = −.291, p = .003) were the best predictors of weapon carrying for boys. Time in extracurricular activities (B = −.267, p = .016), time volunteering (B = .262, p = .007), exercise frequency (B = −.221, p = .046), and number of sports team memberships (B = .240, p = .021) were significant predictors of fighting frequency for girls. None of the activity participation variables were predictive of female weapon carrying. Findings suggest that different types of extracurricular activities are predictive of violent activity. Deanna C. Linville is an Assistant Professor in the Marriage and Family Therapy program at University of Oregon. Received Ph.D. from Virginia Tech in Marriage and Family Therapy. Major research interests are international adoption, collaborative healthcare, and youth resilience. Dr. Angela J. Huebner is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Development at Virginia Tech in Falls Church, Virginia. Her research interests include examining adolescent risk and protective factors in context as well as studying the effects of U.S. military deployments on adolescents in military families. |
