Understanding Structural Violence in Community Violence Intervention (CVI)

A Multi-City Qualitative Analysis of Practitioner Perspectives

Bibliographic Data

ID13775769
AuthorsAsia S Ivey (0009-0007-9655-9851, Centers for Violence Prevention, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA , USA, corresponding author), Julia J Lund (0000-0003-2575-440X, Centers for Violence Prevention, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA , USA), Amanda J Aubel (0000-0002-7050-0604, Centers for Violence Prevention, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA , USA), Shani A Bugg (0000-0003-4538-0206, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), Shani A L Buggs (Centers for Violence Prevention, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA , USA)
Year2025
Volume62
Pages469580251376234-469580251376234
Publication date2025-09-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueINQUIRY The Journal of Health Care Organization Provision and Financing (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0046-9580 • E-ISSN: 1945-7243
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/00469580251376234
PMID40956122
OpenAlexW4414242428
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited30

The discourse on community violence has expanded over the years, shifting from a focus on interpersonal physical harm to a broader understanding that includes systemic and structural harm. Structural violence, characterized by institutionalized inequities in health, education, and generational wealth, disproportionately impacts marginalized communities and reflects deliberate systems of oppression designed to maintain power imbalances. In community-based violence intervention and prevention (CVIP), identifying how harm can be systematically perpetuated is critical for developing and advancing structurally grounded evaluative measures and training strategies for practitioners. This qualitative study involved interviews and focus groups with community violence intervention (CVI) practitioners (N = 45) from Sacramento, Milwaukee, and Baltimore. We analyzed participants' narratives to explore their understandings of the root causes of community-based firearm violence, with particular attention to the core tenets of structural violence: power, marginalization, oppression, adversity, and trauma. Findings revealed that CVI practitioners hold varying levels of structural violence expertise, ranging from individual-level explanations of violence to critical accounts of how systemic forces cultivate and reproduce structural harm. Participants discussed how government divestment, institutional neglect, and collective and vicarious trauma shape the conditions contributing to community violence. Their reflections underscore the need for standardized training and professional development that embeds structural frameworks into CVIP operations and program evaluations. As key actors in CVIP, CVI practitioners must be equipped with the knowledge and skills to address the structural drivers of community violence. Investing in their capacity for research and advocacy will strengthen the field's effectiveness, scale, and legitimacy in preventing community-based firearm violence through structurally informed practice and evaluation

Domestic violence · Focus group · Government (linguistics · Harm · Intervention (counseling · Oppression · Qualitative research · Structural inequality · Structural violence · Community Health and Development · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Homelessness and Social Issues

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