Charting the Characteristics of Public Health Approaches to Preventing Violence in Local Communities: A Scoping Review of Operationalised Interventions

Abstract

Interpersonal violence is a global driver of significant physical and mental ill health. Violence prevention is now a public health priority, and there have been international calls for the development of public health approaches to address this problem. This systematic scoping review identifies the scope of the literature and characteristics of operationalised public health approaches to prevent violence in communities. Synthesising what is meant by a public health approach to violence and the characteristics of operationalised approaches will assist future intervention development. Systematic searches of published sources (published following the World Health Assembly (WHA) declaration of violence as a public problem, June 1996 to April 2023 inclusive) were completed across six leading databases. For each identified approach, and reflecting a realist-informed methodology, data were extracted under the themes of major drivers, values and principles, key components, and community involvement. Of the 43 included studies, most were conducted in high-income countries and focussed on preventing weapon-related and youth violence. The studies from middle- and low-income countries also included responses to varying sexual and gender-based violence. There is a wide variety of identified characteristics, reflecting the diversity of violent behaviours public health approaches aim to impact. Approaches included focusing on changing norms and stopping violence at the individual level, to attempts to influence wider structural prevention opportunities.