[A cross-sectional study on physically violent behavior among youth males in Chengdu, Sichuan province]

To investigate the prevalence of physically violent behavior among 18-34 years old males in Chengdu.

2 151 males aged 18-34 years was recruited in Chengdu, using a multistage stratified random sampling method. "Men's health and modern lifestyles survey questionnaire" was adopted to collect information on demography, physical violent behavior, attitude and reactions to violence.

Self-reported prevalence of physical violent behavior since 15 years of age among those 18-34 year-old males was 51.8%. 17.8% of the young males reported having violent behavior in the past 5 years, but the prevalence declined progressively with age (P < 0.01). People who were religious or remained single had higher prevalence rates than those non-religious, married or having regular sex partners (P < 0.01). Prevalence seemed relatively high in students or workers at service/commercial fields, with rates as 24.5% and 20.3%.

Data from our study suggested that physical violence was an important problem among young males in Chengdu. Factors as being young, single, divorced or widowed were associated with self-reported violent behavior. People who were religious, being students or working at the service/commercial fields seemed to be under high risk of carrying physical violence.