Civic Participation, Regional Subcultures, and Violence

This analysis extends prior macro-level homicide research by examining the links between civic participation, regional subcultures of violence, and age-specific homicide rates. To this end, an integrated community resource perspective was developed and this approach was contrasted with community deficit perspectives. To lend greater specificity, the distinctive effects of religious and secular participation on community levels of juvenile and adult homicide were also considered. Analyses of county-level adult and juvenile homicide offending patterns suggest that regional subcultures as well as religious and secular forms of civic participation play important—yet age-graded—roles in reducing interpersonal violence.