Thousands of people experience youth violence every day. Youth violence negatively impacts youth in all communities—urban, suburban, rural, and tribal.
- Youth violence is common. 1 in 5 high school students reported being bullied on school property in the past year.1
- Youth violence kills and injuries. Homicide is the third leading cause of death for young people ages 10-24. Each day, approximately 12 young people are victims of homicide and almost 1,400 are treated in emergency departments for nonfatal assault-related injuries.2
- Youth violence is costly. Youth homicides and nonfatal physical assault-related injuries result in an estimated $18.2 billion annually in combined medical and lost productivity costs alone.ii
The impact of youth violence is not the same for all young people and communities. The rates and types of youth violence vary across communities and across subgroups of youth. These disparities can be attributed to different exposure to risk and protective factors.
- Disproportionate burden on ethnic and racial minority youth. Homicide is the leading cause of death for African-American youth, the second leading cause of death for Hispanic youth, the third leading cause of death for American Indian/Alaska Native youth, and the fourth leading cause of death among White and Asian/Pacific Islander youth. ii
- Different patterns for males and females. The youth homicide rate in 2016 was 6 times higher among males than females. ii The prevalence of involvement in physical fights among high school students also was approximately 1.7 times higher for male compared to female students.3 In contrast, female high school students were more likely than their male peers to report being a victim of bullying at school.iii
- Disproportionate burden on sexual minority youth. Young people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender or are questioning their sexual identity (LGBTQ) have a heightened risk for violence. Relative to peers who do not identify as LGBTQ, these youth report experiencing higher levels of verbal and physical violence and associated physical injury across multiple studies.4
Resources
Bureau of Justice Statistics
This bureau at the U.S. Department of Justice collects, analyzes, publishes, and disseminates information on crime, criminal offenders, victims of crime, and the operation of justice systems at all levels of government.
Indicators of School Crime and Safety
The U.S. Departments of Education and Justice publish this report on school crime and student safety each year.
National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
NCES is the primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education in the U.S. and other nations. NCES fulfills a Congressional mandate to collect, collate, analyze, and report complete statistics on the condition of American education; conduct and publish reports; and review and report on education activities internationally.
National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS)
NVDRS provides states and communities with a clearer understanding of violent deaths to guide local decisions about efforts to prevent violence and track progress over time. NVDRS is the only state-based surveillance (reporting) system that pools data on violent deaths from multiple sources into a usable, anonymous database.
Statistical Briefing Book
This resource enables users to access online information via OJJDP's website to learn more about juvenile crime and victimization.
Uniform Crime Reporting
The FBI collects data on crime in the United States. Each year, the FBI publishes a summary of Crime in the United States, Hate Crime Statistics, special studies, reports, and monographs.
WISQARS
CDC’s WISQARS (Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System) is an interactive, online database that provides fatal and nonfatal injury, violent death, and cost of injury data from a variety of trusted sources.
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System
CDC administers a nationwide survey every two years in public and private high schools so investigators can examine health-related behaviors including fighting, weapon carrying, bullying, dating violence, and sexual violence.
1 Kann et al., 2016
2 CDC, 2016
2 CDC, 2017
2 Institute of Medicine, 2011
