OBJECTIVE Educational interventions directed to the prevention of youth inter-personal violence make assumptions about the educational needs of adolescents for violence-prevention despite little available data. This paper provides new information on background levels of adolescents' knowledge of, attitudes about and experience with violence. METHODS Over 400 teens across Boston's neighborhoods were surveyed by rando-digit dialed telephone techniques. RESULTS Results show that while boys are more often involved in violence, almost one quarter of girls report fighting. Black teens witness more violence and are threatened more often than whites, but they do not fight more. Knowledge scores indicate a need for improvement in adolescents' understanding of risk factors. Attitude scores indicate that adolescents believe fighting can and should be avoided, but they lack knowledge of behavioral options. Regression analyses show a positive relationship between violence experience and knowledge and attitudes. CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that preventive interventions should be directed to both improving adolescents' knowledge and understanding of personal risk and increasing their repertoire of conflict-resolution skills.