Technology-Based Approaches to Preventing Youth Violence

• Author: Patrice M. Mareschal,Katherine L. Hanson,S. Eric Jackson,William L. McKee
• DOI: 10.1177/1541204006295148
• Published date: 01 April 2007
• Date: 01 April 2007
• Subject Matter: Articles

Youth Violence and
Juvenile Justice
Volume 5 Number 2
Technology-Based Approaches
April 2007 168-187
© 2007 Sage Publications
10.1177/1541204006295148
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A Formative Evaluation of Program
Development and Implementation
in Four Communities
Patrice M. Mareschal
Rutgers University
William L. McKee
S. Eric Jackson
University of North Texas
Katherine L. Hanson
U.S. Office of Personnel Management
This study uses implementation research and case study methodologies to evaluate the Federal
Mediation and Conciliation Service’s Youth Initiative in four communities. In each location,
information technology was used to involve stakeholders in developing solutions to the youth
violence problem. The purpose of this article is to document the different approaches to pro-
gram development and implementation across cases and provide feedback to policy makers
and program stakeholders that can be used to make future improvements. The programs are
assessed using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Best Practices of Youth
Violence Prevention, and feedback for improvement is provided. The biggest successes
include assessing the nature and extent of youth violence in local communities, identifying
those who would benefit from intervention, and deciding how to reach out to participants.
Establishing clear goals proved to be the biggest challenge.
Keywords:
formative evaluation; implementation; program development; youth violence
prevention; technology,
Youth Violence: An Old Problem With a Growing Sense of Urgency
Although juvenile crime rates in the United States have been decreasing since 1994,
juvenile criminal violence remains a threat to communities (Welsh, 2005). In fact, youth
violence has been described as a “public health problem of epidemic proportions” (Weist
& Cooley-Quille, 2001, p. 147). There is a growing consensus about the need for programs
to prevent youth violence (Tolan, 2001b). As evidence of the policy significance of youth
violence, funds have been made available at the federal, state, and local levels to develop
and implement violence prevention programs (Cunningham, 2000). The current research is
part of an ongoing project to develop innovative ways to reduce and prevent youth violence.
Specifically, the current research evaluates the development and implementation of the
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Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service’s (FMCS) Youth Conflict Resolution and Peer
Mediation Project in four communities. In each of these programs the FMCS’s Technology
Assisted Group Solutions (TAGS) program was used to involve the community in devel-
oping school-based programs to address to the youth violence problem.
History of the FMCS
The FMCS was created in 1947 as an independent agency of the U.S. government. The
FMCS’s primary mission is to preserve and promote labor-management cooperation by
providing dispute resolution assistance to employers and their unionized employees. Over
time, the FMCS expanded its areas of practice beyond the arena of labor-management rela-
tions. For example, in 1975 the FMCS entered the arena of alternative dispute resolution
(ADR) to help resolve a 100-year-old conflict over land use between the Hopi and Navajo
Indian tribes in Arizona (FMCS, 2004b). Currently, the FMCS provides dispute resolution
assistance in a variety of settings including: Equal Employment Opportunity/workplace
disputes, regulatory negotiation /public policy dialogs, environmental disputes, and inter-
national conflicts. In addition to traditional mediation, the FMCS offers a full range of ser-
vices aimed at developing the practice of conflict resolution such as disputes systems
design and relationship development and training (FMCS, 2004b).
Technology and Dispute Resolution
Increasingly, information technology (IT) and distance communication are being used to
facilitate more traditional ADR processes. Commonly labeled as electronic dispute resolu-
tion (EDR) or online dispute resolution (ODR), this approach offers a new set of informa-
tion management and communication tools for dispute resolution. Because dispute resolution
involves information processing, information management, and communication, the appli-
cation of IT to dispute resolution seems to be a natural fit (Hörnle, 2003).
Currently EDR/ODR represents a broad spectrum of processes. At one end of the spec-
trum, traditional face-to-face meetings predominate, and very little technology is employed.
At the other end, the parties to disputes never meet face-to-face and disputes are resolved
entirely using online technology. The challenge for dispute resolution professionals is to
choose the right mix of technology and traditional dispute resolution methods (Hörnle, 2003).
Youth and Technology
A technology-based, group communication approach to conflict resolution may be a
conceptual hurdle for some. As Hattal and Hattal (2002) suggested, technology is a double-
edged sword. On the one hand technology, such as video games and computers, encourages
isolation because it facilitates the avoidance of face-to-face interactions. It is through face-
to-face interactions that children learn social skills such as compassion, empathy, and con-
cern for others. Children who lack secure attachments to others may be at the greatest risk

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Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice
for retreating into a cyber-world made up solely of television, video games, and computers.
For such children, the technological companions of their cyber-world, such as point-and-
shoot games and Internet sites advocating violence, can fuel anger and revenge.
At the same time, technology can be a valuable tool in preventing youth violence because
young people for the most part are comfortable using technology (Hattal & Hattal, 2002).
Technology-based interventions have been used to address similar issues such as health pro-
motion and substance abuse prevention (Bosworth, Gustafson, & Hawkins, 1994; Orlandi,
Dozier, & Marta, 1990). Indeed, another computer-based violence prevention program,
SMARTTalk (Students Managing Anger Resolution Together), performed well when pilot
tested at a middle school. Specifically, SMARTTalk was well received by the target popula-
tion, and participants demonstrated improved knowledge and practice of prosocial behaviors
(Bosworth, Espelage, & DuBay, 1998).
FMCS’s TAGS
The FMCS’s TAGS program uses IT to facilitate conflict resolution and collaborative
problem solving (Barnes, 2002; Wolf, Numair, & Yoedt, 2002). TAGS is a networked sys-
tem of Internet servers, mobile computers, electronic conferencing facilities, customized
software, expert facilitators, and external partners assembled to enhance group communi-
cation and decision making. TAGS incorporates two software packages, Facilitate.com and
eRoom.
Facilitate.com may be described as set of Web pages designed and linked in a fashion that
allows users to perform a number of collaborative and analytical tasks in a synchronous or
asynchronous environment. For example, Facilitate.com conferences or meetings allow all
participants to make comments or enter ideas on the “electronic flipchart” simultaneously.
The number of participants is limited only by the speed and capacity of the server and the
router handling the traffic. The software is a powerful tool for gathering input.
However, collecting the data is not the sole value of the software. When input is gath-
ered, facilitators can use the software to
• facilitate discussion of the comments, “flipping” effortlessly from electronic page to elec-
tronic page
• categorize, edit, and rank comments using the software, while the participants are still pre-
sent, in a synchronous conference
• create and conduct surveys based on the participants’ comments
• download comments, surveys, and other data to other programs for further analysis or use
One of Facilitate.com’s most distinguishing features is the fact it is server based and
hosted. Participants do not need sophisticated software or hardware to take part in a con-
ference or meeting. Any computer capable of connecting to the Internet with up-to-date
browser software is sufficient.
Although Facilitiate.com is an excellent program for facilitating collaboration, it has limi-
tations. To address these limitations, the FMCS adopted a system known as eRoom. The
eRoom program is also server-based, allowing synchronous and asynchronous communica-
tion and collaboration. Unlike Factiliate.com, eRoom is not the primary collaboration tool.

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Rather, it is a virtual meeting space, or “e-room,” through which software programs are
accessed, documents are stored, e-mail is sent, and other meeting-related activities take place.
Together these programs may be used to pursue such tasks as information sharing and nego-
tiation, idea generation, decision making, problem solving, and commitment building.
As part of its congressionally authorized Youth Conflict Resolution and Peer Mediation
Project (hereafter referred to as the Youth Initiative), the FMCS employed TAGS to help com-
munities address youth violence issues. The Youth Initiative offers students, parents, schools,
and community leaders an important tool to more effectively meet the challenge of school and
community violence (Barnes, 2002; Hattal & Hattal, 2002; Wolf et al., 2002). In brief, TAGS
provides school districts and local communities with state-of-the-art...