NCJ Number
192451
Journal
Law & Policy Volume: 23 Issue: 3 Dated: July 2001 Pages: 409-416
Date Published
July 2001
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This paper summarizes information on the trends and risk factors of school violence as well as possible means of prevention and recommendations, so as to assess current understanding in these areas and provide a basis for social policy and research.
Abstract
Regarding trends, the most encouraging news on school violence was that school-associated deaths decreased by 78 percent from the 1992-93 to the 1999-00 school year, with this decline paralleling declines in students reporting that they carried a weapon to school (down 41 percent) and engaged in physical fights (down 12 percent). Still, it is little comfort to know that the rates have decreased when 2 of every 25 students have a gun in school on some days during the average month. Regarding risk factors, males, students involved in substance abuse, and students who got into fights at school were not only more likely to carry a weapon to school, but were more likely to do so frequently. One of the common characteristics of the perpetrators of the recent multiple school killings was that they felt threatened by other students who often bullied them. An overview of prevention efforts focuses on law enforcement programs, including gun-control laws; school zero-tolerance policies for violence-related behaviors in school; and the development of plans for addressing school violence and other potential school crises. Promising school programs with at least some initial supporting data for effectiveness include social skills training, tutoring, anger management, impulse control, and bullying prevention. Several programs contain parent-training and teacher-training components. The recommendations outlined in this paper are in the general areas of social policy and research. 7 references