How Young Adults Living in Public Housing Perceive Their Neighborhood and Cope with Negative Experiences

Background and Purpose: The U.S. has one of the highest rates of violence among developed countries, and young adults (YAs) are more exposed to community violence than any other age group (U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, 2011). However, we know little about how urban YAs perceive neighborhood safety and cope with negative experiences. In line with the Grand Challenge to ensure all youth get a healthy start, the purpose of this study is to understand how YAs living in a low-resourced urban environment describe the neighborhood, safety, and strategies for coping with negative experiences.  

Methods: Young adults ages 18 to 30 (N = 50) were recruited from three public housing developments in a Northeastern city using area sampling by sending recruitment letters to randomly chosen apartments. During a face-to-face interview, participant responses to open-ended questions regarding neighborhood experiences, safety, coping, and services were written by the interviewer. Two coders applied grounded theory methods to code the data (Glaser, 1965). Coders initially independently coded 20 interviews using constant comparison. Coders met to compare and contrast codes and create a codebook, defining focused and in vivo codes. The codebook was then applied to all 50 cases. Coders met regularly to discuss the application of codes, using consensus methods to resolve discrepancies. The codes and quotes that emerged are the results presented below.

Results: The sample is 34% male, 50% Latino, 24% Black/African American, 12% Asian, 12% Biracial, and 2% White. Several themes emerged from the data. First, many YAs reported feeling safe in the neighborhood, for example, “I’ve never felt I needed any protection or to call for help.” Some YAs described situations where they feel unsafe, “I feel unsafe at night when I am alone.” Second, many participants reported that they did not believe that their race/ethnicity impacts the ways that others treat them in the neighborhood, citing that diversity in the neighborhood creates acceptance. Third, some participants perceived that the neighborhood has changed over time, for example, “Things in my neighborhood have gotten worse, more violence.” Fourth, YAs described coping with negative experiences in the neighborhood in terms of problem-focused coping such as “I limit stopping and talking” and emotional-focused coping, “I use music to relieve me.” Fifth, participants identified formal and informal supports to help them cope with neighborhood experiences, including therapy, neighborhood watch, sports teams, and talking to others. Some also noted that few services are currently available. Finally, a few participants reported complicated relations with police, with one participant stating, “They are the ones who I see mainly harassing random people with no cause” while other participants indicated they would turn to the police for help.

Conclusions and Implications: Young adults report a number of situations where they feel unsafe in their own neighborhood (e.g. at night). They desire additional services to help them cope, but perceive that few services are available. This implies that policy makers and practitioners can fill an important services gap by initiating interventions designed for YAs living in low-resourced, high-crime neighborhoods.