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School violence: Parent and school official perceptions and responses

Author

Marianne Michelle Kabour, University of the Pacific

Date of Award

2006

Document Type

Thesis - Pacific Access Restricted

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Gary Howells

First Committee Member

Ken Beauchamp

Second Committee Member

Kate Williams

Abstract

In our schools today, there are numerous violence prevention programs that have been implemented in order to curb the recent increase in the rate of school shootings. In addition, there have been a large number of articles written covering the topic of school violence, but little research has been done focusing on the perceptions of parents and school officials in regard to school violence. In the present study findings reveal why it is important to focus our attention not only on student perceptions of school safety, but on parent and school official perceptions, as well. Parents and school officials received a self-report questionnaire and were asked to indicate which violence prevention programs they believe will make students feel safer and which ones they personally would like to see implemented in the schools. In addition, parents were asked to indicate whether their child has been a victim of violence or will be a future victim of violence and the perceived level of their child's anxiety regarding his/her safety at school. It was found that (a) there is a positive, statistically significant relationship between parents who reported that their child has been a personal victim of violence and the rating of their child's anxiety level; (b) parents who perceived their children as having higher levels of anxiety did not endorse more safety programs; (c) overall, parents endorsed more programs than school officials, especially those that were invasive and help-oriented; and (d) the programs the adults indicated they personally would like to see implemented in the schools did not differ significantly from the programs they endorsed as making students feel safer at school.

Pages

151

ISBN

9780542897627

Recommended Citation

Kabour, Marianne Michelle. (2006). School violence: Parent and school official perceptions and responses. University of the Pacific, Thesis - Pacific Access Restricted. https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/uop_etds/2737