How Community and Individual Risk Factors Mutually Impact Youth's Perceived Safety: A Syndemic Analysis Using Structural Equation Modeling

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mutual impact of community and individual factors on youth's perceptions of community safety, using structural equation modeling (SEM) conceptualized by syndemic theory. This study used survey data collected from a county wide sample of middle and high school students (N=25,147) in West Central Florida in 2015. The outcome variable was youth's perceptions of community safety. Predictors were latent individual and community factors constructed from 14 observed variables including gun accessibility, substance use, depressive symptoms, and multiple neighborhood disadvantage questions. Three structural equation models were conceptualized based on syndemic theory and analyzed in Mplus 8 using weighted least squares (WLS) estimation. Each model's goodness of fit was assessed. Approximately seven percent of youth reported feeling unsafe in their community. After model modifications, the final model showed a good fit of the data and adhered to the theoretical assumption. In the final SEM model, an individual latent factor was implied by individual predictors measuring gun accessibility without adult's permission (beta=0.70), sadness and hopelessness (beta=0.52), alcohol use (beta=0.79), marijuana use (beta=0.94), and illegal drug use (beta=0.77). Meanwhile, a community latent factor was indicated by multiple community problems including public drinking (beta=0.88), drug addiction (beta=0.96), drug selling (beta=0.97), lack of money (beta=0.83), gang activities (beta=0.90), litter and trash (beta=0.79), graffiti (beta=0.91), deserted houses (beta=0.86), and shootings (beta=0.93). A second-order syndemic factor that represented the individual and community factors showed a very strong negative association with youth's safe perception (beta=-0.98). This study indicates that individual risk factors and disadvantaged community conditions interacted with each other and mutually affected youth's perceptions of community safety. To reduce these co-occurring effects and improve safe perceptions among youth, researchers and practitioners should develop and implement comprehensive strategies targeting both individual and community factors.