HHS-Supported Research on Violence Prevention

GAO examined the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) violence prevention research grants to determine whether HHS research efforts were seeking biological and medical markers in an attempt to link race or socioeconomic class with violence and aggression. GAO noted that: (1) of the 205 abstracts of basic and applied violence research being conducted, 13 percent were founded primarily on biological bases; (2) none of the projects reviewed were attempting to identify biological or genetic markers that caused violent or other antisocial behavior; (3) there was no indication that HHS was conducting research that attempted to identify biological or genetic factors of a specific race or socioeconomic class that might predispose a member of that group to commit violent acts; and (4) the Public Health Service was not supporting research that sought to identify biological or genetic markers that would link violent behavior to race or class.