Community Violence, Perceived Neighborhood Quality, Collectivism and Children’s Life Satisfaction: A Cross-national Perspective

Abstract

While community violence is recognized as a salient risk factor in the developmental trajectory of children, our comprehension of the underlying mechanisms is inchoate. This study adopts a child-centric perspective, focusing on children as active social agents, in order to scrutinize the determinants influencing their life satisfaction. The overarching objectives of this investigation are twofold: (1) to investigate the potential mediating role of perceived neighborhood quality in the link between community violence and children’s life satisfaction, and (2) to investigate the moderating role of collectivism in shaping the associations between community violence, perceived neighborhood quality, and life satisfaction. The sample encompasses 13,730 children (mean age = 9.95 years, 50.35% boys) hailing from 13 distinct countries, which is sourced from the third wave of the Children’s Worlds: International Survey of Children’s Well-Being (ISCWeB). Liner multilevel models reveal a significant indirect effect of community violence on children’s life satisfaction via perceived neighborhood quality. In addition, the effect of community violence on perceived neighbourhood quality is stronger for children who live in individualist culture, while the effect of perceived neighbourhood quality on life satisfaction is stronger for children who live in collectivist culture. Significant implications for future research endeavors, policy formulation and practical interventions are provided in this study.