Heather A Turner

Biographic Data

ID145036
NAMEHeather A Turner
GIVEN NAMESHeather A
FAMILY NAMETurner
SIGNATURETURNER H A
AFFILIATIONSUniversity of New Hampshire
ORCID0000-0002-2900-2419
VERIFIEDYes
TOTAL WORKS60
TOTAL CITATIONS380
WORKS AS AUTHOR60
WORKS AS EDITOR0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR1988
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2026
H-INDEX11

  • Associations Between Gun-Involved Victimization, Poly-Victimization, and Gun Carrying in a U.S. National Sample of Younger Adults

    Heather A Turner, Kimberly Mitchell et al.ARTICLEJournal of Aggression,…2026

    Exposure to violence has been found to influence gun carrying, but few studies have specifically examined associations between gun violence exposure and gun carrying, controlling for other forms of victimization. Additionally, little research has considered the role of poly-victimization. The current study uses data from the Growing Up with Guns study, a nationally representative cross-sectional survey of participants recruited through the AmeriS…

  • Identifying Subtypes of Image-Based Sexual Abuse and their Distinct Incident Characteristics, Victimization Histories, and Personal Correlates

    Open AccessKimberly Mitchell, Ateret Gewirtz‐meydan et al.ARTICLEJournal of Youth and Adolescence2026References: 44

    Image-based sexual abuse is common among adolescents, yet most research treats it as a single, uniform construct, obscuring important variation in how image-based harms occur and who is most vulnerable. This lack of differentiation represents a central gap in the field, limiting theoretical development and hindering understanding of the behavioral and relational dynamics that shape youth image-based sexual abuse. The present study addresses this …

  • Prevalence of exposure to someone else’s firearm violence, threats, and risky behavior among a national sample of young people in the United States

    Open AccessKimberly Mitchell, Victoria L Banyard et al.ARTICLEFrontiers in Public Health2025

    This article provides prevalence rates for a wide range of types of exposure to someone else’s firearm violence, threats, and risky behavior among youth and young adults across several different demographic and structural characteristics. Data are from the Growing Up with Guns study of 5,311 participants recruited through the AmeriSpeak Panel. Data were collected from September 2023 to January 2024. Eligibility included U.S. residents who were ag…

  • Image-based sexual abuse profiles

    Open AccessKimberly Mitchell, Ateret Gewirtz‐meydan et al.ARTICLEComputers in Human Behavior2025

    Image-Based Sexual Abuse (IBSA) is a widespread phenomenon with profound psychological, social, and relational impacts. Yet, limited research has explored the intersection of IBSA with mental health symptoms, adversities, and poly-victimization, as well as how these experiences vary across socio-demographic factors and social contexts. This study aims to identify distinct latent profiles of IBSA survivors based on victimization experiences, adver…

  • Variations in Hate Crime Cases by Bias Motivation Type

    Open AccessHeather A Turner, Lisa M Jones et al.ARTICLECrime & Delinquency2025

    Accurate and detailed information on the nature of hate crimes in the United States has been hindered by limitations in the compiling of hate crime statistics. The National Hate Crime Investigation Study (NHCIS) collected data from a nationally representative sample of law enforcement agencies across the U.S. about the numbers of hate crimes investigated during 2018. Results show differences in a variety of case characteristics across four major …

  • Child Maltreatment in Youth-Serving Organizations

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Leanne Gast et al.ARTICLETrauma Violence & Abuse2025

    Child abuse in youth-serving organizations (YSO) is an increasingly referenced topic, but it currently has a limited epidemiological foundation. A body of research is beginning to shed light on this abuse, and this scoping review was aimed at better documenting what is currently known. The review specifically examined published and gray literature on child abuse in YSOs across several subcategories: daycare, detention/juvenile justice, healthcare…

  • When Is Online Sexual Solicitation of a Minor Considered Sexual Abuse? Recommendations for Victim Prevalence Surveys

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Casey Cavanaugh et al.ARTICLETrauma Violence & Abuse2024

    Many new surveys have been developed to assess the prevalence of online sexual abuse. An important type of question asked in many of these surveys is about online sexual solicitation. However, not all sexual solicitations of children necessarily qualify as sexual abuse as it has conventionally been defined. Sexual solicitations from other same age youth may be legal and nonabusive. Solicitations of youth above the age of consent by adults may als…

  • Online commercial sexual exploitation of children in a national victim survey

    Open AccessWendy A Walsh, David Finkelhor et al.ARTICLEPsychological Trauma Theory…2024

    This national survey reveals a high frequency of childhood commercial sex that diverges from descriptions of dynamics based on police and social agency data. Such dynamics suggest the need for alternative approaches to prevention. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)

  • Persisting concerns about image exposure among survivors of image-based sexual exploitation and abuse in childhood

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Heather A Turner et al.ARTICLEPsychological Trauma Theory…2024

    The study highlights that some survivors of sexual image exploitation and abuse have persistent concerns about further image exposure to other audiences. Survivors with lower levels of persistent concern are typically those who do not believe the images are available online. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)

  • Characteristics and Dynamics of Cyberstalking Victimization Among Juveniles and Young Adults

    Open AccessWendy A Walsh, David Finkelhor et al.ARTICLEViolence Against Women2024References: 5

    Using the nationally representative Ipsos online KnowledgePanel, the sample included three hundred thirty-six 18- to 28-year-olds who retrospectively reported first cyberstalking incidents as juveniles (9- to 17-year-olds) or adults. Half of the sample first experienced cyberstalking as juveniles and half first experienced it as adults. Juveniles were more likely to have more than two perpetrators in the same episode, to experience more violent t…

  • Emerging Ideas

    Open AccessC J Tucker, David Finkelhor et al.ARTICLEFamily Relations2023

  • Exposure to Multiple Forms of Bias Victimization on Youth and Young Adults

    Open AccessKimberly Mitchell, Lisa M Jones et al.ARTICLEJournal of Youth and Adolescence2020Cited by: 1References: 43

  • Family and friend social support as mediators of adolescent sibling victimization and mental health, self-esteem, and delinquency

    Open AccessC J Tucker, David Finkelhor et al.ARTICLEAmerican Journal of Orthopsychiatry2020

    850; 49% female) was conducted with a nationally representative sample of United States adolescents (Aged 10 to 17). Three mediation models were tested exploring (a) the unique effects of family and friend support, (b) the relative effects of each type of support, and (c) the effects of total support (family and friend support summed). The three models demonstrated partial mediation of adolescents' mental health and self-esteem. Family and total …

  • Patterns of Sibling Victimization as Predictors of Peer Victimization in Childhood and Adolescence

    Open AccessC J Tucker, David Finkelhor et al.ARTICLEJournal of Family Violence2018Cited by: 4References: 2

  • Effects of Poly-Victimization on Adolescent Social Support, Self-Concept, and Psychological Distress

    Open AccessHeather A Turner, Anne Shattuck et al.ARTICLEJournal of Interpersonal Violence2017

    Past research has demonstrated the particularly damaging effects of exposure to multiple forms of victimization, or “poly-victimization,” on youth mental health. The primary objective of the present study is to begin to identify the mechanisms that help explain its powerful impact. Analyses are based on two waves of longitudinal data from the National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV), conducted in 2008 and 2010, that comprised …

  • Polyvictimization and Youth Violence Exposure Across Contexts

    Open AccessHeather A Turner, Anne Shattuck et al.ARTICLEJournal of Adolescent Health2016

  • A revised inventory of Adverse Childhood Experiences

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Anne Shattuck et al.ARTICLEChild Abuse & Neglect2015

  • Prevalence of Childhood Exposure to Violence, Crime, and Abuse

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Heather A Turner et al.ARTICLEJAMA Pediatrics2015

    IMPORTANCE: It is important to estimate the burden of and trends for violence, crime, and abuse in the lives of children. OBJECTIVE: To provide health care professionals, policy makers, and parents with current estimates of exposure to violence, crime, and abuse across childhood and at different developmental stages. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV) includes a representative sampl…

  • Victim Reports of Bystander Reactions to In-Person and Online Peer Harassment

    Open AccessLisa M Jones, Kimberly Mitchell et al.ARTICLEJournal of Youth and Adolescence2015References: 18

  • The Lifetime Prevalence of Child Sexual Abuse and Sexual Assault Assessed in Late Adolescence

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Anne Shattuck et al.ARTICLEJournal of Adolescent Health2014

  • Violence, Crime, and Abuse Exposure in a National Sample of Children and Youth

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Heather A Turner et al.ARTICLEJAMA Pediatrics2013

    IMPORTANCE: Because exposure to violence, crime, and abuse has been shown to have serious consequences on child development, physicians and policymakers need to know the kinds of exposure that occur at various developmental stages. OBJECTIVES: To provide updated estimates of and trends for childhood exposure to a broad range of violence, crime, and abuse victimizations. DESIGN: The National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence was based on a…

  • Improving the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study Scale

    Open AccessDavid Finkelhor, Anne Shattuck et al.ARTICLEJAMA Pediatrics2013

    OBJECTIVE: To test and improve upon the list of adverse childhood experiences from the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study scale by examining the ability of a broader range to correlate with mental health symptoms. DESIGN: Nationally representative sample of children and adolescents. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Telephone interviews with a nationally representative sample of 2030 youth aged 10 to 17 years who were asked about lifetime adversit…

  • Family structure, victimization, and child mental health in a nationally representative sample

    Open AccessHeather A Turner, David Finkelhor et al.ARTICLESocial Science & Medicine2013Cited by: 7References: 66

  • Community Disorder, Victimization Exposure, and Mental Health in a National Sample of Youth

    Open AccessHeather A Turner, Anne Shattuck et al.ARTICLEJournal of Health and Social…2013Cited by: 14References: 75

    This study considers whether elevated distress among youth living in more disordered neighborhoods can be explained by personal exposure to violence and victimization, level of non-victimization adversity, and family support. Analyses were based on a sample of 2,039 youth ages 10 to 17 who participated in the National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence, a national telephone survey conducted in 2008. Using structural equation modeling, we f…

  • Family context, victimization, and child trauma symptoms

    Heather A Turner, David Finkelhor et al.ARTICLEAmerican Journal of Orthopsychiatry2012References: 57

    Based on a nationally representative sample of 2,017 children age 2-9 years, this study examines variations in "safe, stable, and nurturing" relationships (SSNRs), including several forms of family perpetrated victimization, and documents associations between these factors and child trauma symptoms. Findings show that many children were exposed to multiple forms of victimization within the family (such as physical or sexual abuse, emotional maltr…