Interpersonal Violence
Please click below to learn more about our Youth Violence/Bullying projects.
PI: Marizen Ramirez
University of Minnesota, College of Public Health
Division of Environmental Health Sciences
Funding Source: National Institute of Justice
We will classify the contents of cyberbullying messages, assess their association with offline bullying, and examine whether peer networks promote these behaviors. We will employ a panel survey of 400 adolescents from 3 middle schools in Iowa. In a subsample of approximately 100 smartphone users, we will equip adolescents’ smartphones with software designed to capture incoming and outgoing text messages and Facebook posts and to periodically survey adolescents about any experiences with bullying. To classify and measure the frequency of cyberbullying, electronic communications will be analyzed using natural language processing and machine learning algorithms from computer science and quantitative coding techniques in communications research. Social network analysis will be used to examine whether cyberbullying is related to the structure and composition of peer networks.
PI: Tiffany Conroy
Iowa Department of Public Health, (IDPH)
Funding Source: CDC
The IDPH was funded by the CDC to implement local programmatic efforts in Rape Prevention Education (RPE). Local agencies throughout Iowa receive technical and grant support to implement local programs and conduct evaluation of their efforts. For the past decade, the UI IPRC has collaborated with the IDPH to conduct primary prevention training, to assist in the development of strategic plans, and to evaluate RPE progress and impact. In the past year, the IDPH with support from the UI IPRC has partnered with other states throughout the country to develop cross-state collaborations to develop common language and to implement evidence-based approaches. This collaboration will continue as a multi-state effort, and the UI IPRC will continue involvement in evaluating these activities.
PI: Lisa Roth
University of Iowa, College of Public Health
Injury Prevention Research Center
Funding Source: CDC/NCIPC
The National Violent Death Reporting System (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. These sources include state and local medical examiner, coroner, law enforcement, toxicology, and vital statistics records. NVDRS covers all types of violent deaths—including homicides and suicides—in all settings and for all age groups. NVDRS may include data on mental health problems; recent problems with a job, finances, or relationships; physical health problems; and information about circumstances of death. Such data is far more comprehensive than what is available elsewhere. Click here to read more about the Iowa Violent Death Reporting System IAVDRS.
PI: Mark Berg
University of Iowa, Department of Sociology
Funding Source: UI IPRC Pilot Grant Program
An exploration of neighborhood contextual dynamics, adaptive programming, and differential susceptibility
PI: Sangil Lee
University of Iowa, College of Medicine
Funding Source: UI IPRC Pilot Grant Program
PI: Aislinn Conrad-Hiebner, University of Iowa, School of Social Work
Funding Source: UI IPRC Pilot Grant Program
PI: Robyn Espinosa, PhD candidate, Occupational & Environmental Health
Funding Source: UI IPRC Pilot Grant Program
Brief: Iowa’s anti-bullying law: Is it working?
Brief: Anti-bullying laws in 25 states: What is effective?
Read our blog post: Linking data to understand violent deaths in Iowa
Read our blog post: Sexual violence prevention: Building evidence through evaluation.
Read our blog post: Violence & trauma: Q & A with Professor Mark Berg.
Read our blog post: Rural injuries & violence during COVID-19
