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Abstract
Objective: Research indicates that children who live in underserved urban environments are more likely to experience behavioral problems, such as social withdrawal, school adjustment problems, and self-reported delinquency (e.g., King, Huang, & Dewan, 2022). Studies have shown that for adolescents who later develop anxiety and depression, the neighborhood during childhood development could be a factor (Lee et al., 2018). Environmental conditions such as a higher risk of exposure to violence, limited community resources, and undergoing a significant life change in childhood can result in greater risk for psychological distress, including anxiety (King, Huang, & Dewan, 2022). The purpose of this study was to examine the association between childhood anxiety and stressful life events in a sample of youth and their families living in an urban, low-income area.
Methods: Children ages 5-12 (N = 79) and their primary caregivers (N = 79) were recruited from high-poverty, urban zip codes in Richmond, Virginia. The study was IRB-approved and conducted in a research building near the Virginia Commonwealth University campus. Child anxiety symptoms were measured via parent reports using the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children scale (March et al., 1997; Wood et al,., 2002). Children reported their exposure to stressors including at the community level (e.g., exposure to violence) and within the family (e.g., death) via the Stressful Urban Life Events Scale (Attar et al., 1994; Tolan et al., 1988). Linear regression was used to assess the association between stressful urban life events and child anxiety. Control variables included child gender and age.
Results: Stressful urban life events were positively associated with child anxiety (š¯›½ = .249, p = .027), controlling for child age and gender.
Conclusions: Results indicate that children who live in urban, high-poverty zip codes in Richmond did not have an increased likelihood of having anxiety, parents reported. Understanding aspects of community and contextual stress that impact child mental health may provide insight into interventions seeking to promote resilience in youth exposed to early adversity. However, data for this study are cross-sectional and cannot show the direction of effects. Future research should employ longitudinal designs and use both parent and child reports to investigate the role of urban stressors in child psychological health.
Publication Date
2025
Subject Major(s)
Psychology
Keywords
Childhood Anxiety, Urban Life Events, Poverty
Disciplines
Child Psychology | Developmental Psychology | Development Studies
Current Academic Year
Senior
Faculty Advisor/Mentor
Marcia Winter
Rights
Ā© The Author(s)