Feasibility of an Anxiety Preventive Intervention for Community Violence Exposed African-American Children

Investigated the feasibility of using an anxiety preventive intervention efficacious with Australian children with inner-city African-Americans (aged 10–11) who experienced moderate anxiety problems and community violence exposure. Of 91 fifth-grade students, ten participated in the school-based selective preventive intervention that targeted anxiety disorders. In this pilot study, qualitative and quantitative analyses revealed significant decreases in general anxiety and manifestations of anxiety that were contextually relevant to the community violence exposed youth (i.e., physiological symptoms, worry regarding environmental pressures, and concentration difficulties). The discussion focuses on the modifications necessary to make the prevention program culturally and contextually appropriate for anxious inner-city African-American children.