Fear of Crime and Coping Strategies as Predictors of Posttraumatic Stress and Collective Efficacy Among Emerging Adults in Violent Environments

Research examining community violence as a public health challenge among emerging adults remains insufficient. This study examined the associations among fear of crime, coping strategies, posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), and collective efficacy in violence-exposed contexts. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 792 participants aged 18–29 years from Chihuahua and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, using a multistage sampling approach combining institutional cluster and simple random sampling. Standardized measures assessed fear of crime, coping strategies, PTSS, collective efficacy, and exposure to traumatic events. Results indicated that affective and physiological coping strategies were positively associated with PTSS, whereas cognitive coping was associated with reduced perceived risk and greater engagement in community intervention. Behavioral coping was associated with increased personal and social fear. Within the structural model, higher latent fear of crime was observed among participants in Chihuahua, despite comparatively lower reported exposure to violence than in Ciudad Juárez. These findings suggest distinct cognitive and emotional pathways in trauma adaptation and highlight the need for context-sensitive interventions to strengthen adaptive coping and community resilience in high-violence settings.