PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Judith McFarlane AU - Rozina Karmaliani AU - Hussain Maqbool Ahmed Khuwaja AU - Saleema Gulzar AU - Rozina Somani AU - Tazeen Saeed Ali AU - Yasmeen H Somani AU - Shireen Shehzad Bhamani AU - Ryan D Krone AU - Rene M Paulson AU - Atta Muhammad AU - Rachel Jewkes TI - Preventing Peer Violence Against Children: Methods and Baseline Data of a Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial in Pakistan AID - 10.9745/GHSP-D-16-00215 DP - 2017 Mar 24 TA - Global Health: Science and Practice PG - 115--137 VI - 5 IP - 1 4099 - http://www.ghspjournal.org/content/5/1/115.short 4100 - http://www.ghspjournal.org/content/5/1/115.full SO - GLOB HEALTH SCI PRACT2017 Mar 24; 5 AB - Peer violence was remarkably high at baseline. Among urban public school students, 94% of 6th-grade boys and 85% of girls reported being victimized by peers in the last 4 weeks. And 85% of boys and 66% of girls reported perpetrating such violence. Boys scored worse on a number of mental health measures. A cluster RCT is underway to evaluate a well-established school-based intervention using sports and games to reduce peer violence.Background: Violence against and among children is a global public health problem that annually affects 50% of youth worldwide with major impacts on child development, education, and health including increased probability of major causes of morbidity and mortality in adulthood. It is also associated with the experience of and perpetration of later violence against women. The aim of this article is to describe the intervention, study design, methods, and baseline findings of a cluster randomized controlled trial underway in Pakistan to evaluate a school-based play intervention aiming to reduce peer violence and enhance mental health.Methods: A cluster randomized controlled design is being conducted with boys and girls in grade 6 in 40 schools in Hyderabad, Pakistan, over a period of 2 years. The Multidimensional Peer-Victimization and Peer Perpetration Scales and the Children's Depression Inventory 2 (CDI 2) are being used to measure the primary outcomes while investigator-derived scales are being used to assess domestic violence within the family. Specifics of the intervention, field logistics, ethical, and fidelity management issues employed to test the program's impact on school age youth in a volatile and politically unstable country form this report.Baseline Results: A total of 1,752 school-age youth were enrolled and interviewed at baseline. Over the preceding 4 weeks, 94% of the boys and 85% of the girls reported 1 or more occurrences of victimization, and 85% of the boys and 66% of the girls reported 1 or more acts of perpetration. Boys reported more depression compared with girls, as well as higher negative mood and self-esteem scores and more interpersonal and emotional problems.Interpretation: Globally, prevalence of youth violence perpetration and victimization is high and associated with poor physical and emotional health. Applying a randomized controlled design to evaluate a peer violence prevention program built on a firm infrastructure and that is ready for scale-up and sustainability will make an important contribution to identifying evidence-informed interventions that can reduce youth victimization and perpetration.