What works to prevent youth violence: key findings

Points for reflection:

1. Youth violence is a key public health priority. It is multi-faceted and takes many forms, so it is necessary to reduce risk and promote protective factors at individual, relationship, community, and societal levels.

2. By indirectly exacerbating key risk factors, COVID-19 has the potential to contribute to increased rates of youth violence in Scotland.

3. School contexts can be ideal places for activities aimed at preventing youth violence before it happens. There is the potential to engage many young people at one time and to influence them early in life.

4. It is important to account for cultural context when applying interventions. Much of the available high-quality evidence is from high income countries (e.g. USA) and the evidence base within a Scottish context is limited. The transferability of interventions or their effectiveness cannot be assumed.

5. Assessing the effectiveness of primary preventative interventions in relation to future violence is challenging as behavioural change is difficult to measure.