We assessed college students' perceptions of safety related to concealed carry of firearms on a university campus. Explicit assessments were collected before passage, before implementation, and after implementation of the law; implicit assessments were collected before and after implementation. For comparison, we included college students from a…

As the proliferation of school shootings in the United States is amplified, notably absent in the discussions and research related to addressing this phenomenon are the voices of preservice teachers on the cusp of entering the profession. This case study explored the perceptions of pre-service teachers at a small, private liberal arts college. The…

The view that colleges are generally safe has been challenged by threats of violence on campuses across the country, causing fear among stakeholders. Community college faculty are not immune to crime-related fear on campus; however, the research has largely ignored this population. This research serves to fill that gap. The purpose of this…

This article examines the significance of fear of concealed handguns in the classroom at a public university in Texas, analyzing perceived changes in shared social space and the collective learning environment in terms of affect. This multimethod study provides a framework for understanding the factors behind the fear, which may be seen as…

Arming teachers remains a divisive issue in the United States. Since one goal of this policy is to improve perceptions of safety, it is important to understand how arming teachers impacts students. Using survey data from six Midwestern school districts, we apply Ferraro's risk assessment model to explore how individual and school conditions impact…

School violence, and particularly, school shootings, remain a serious concern among parents, community members, educators, and governmental leadership at the local, state, and national levels. While school shootings periodically dominate media coverage of school safety issues, schools are among the safest places for students in the community. This…

As campus carry policies are implemented at colleges and universities across the country, the concern for the safety of students, faculty members, and campus community members has heightened. In the state of Texas, broad sweeping campus carry policies were recently enacted by Texas State Legislature that allows individuals to conceal carry…

In this essay, Drew Chambers argues that the implementation of modern security technology in American schools (also known as target hardening) may do more harm than good, especially when such technologies represent the primary mode of risk responsiveness. In using technological measures to reduce risk, schools may inadvertently undermine both…

We examined the role of exposure duration and scene complexity on the weapon focus effect (WFE). Memory for the mock crime was affected more by a weapon than an unusual but nonthreatening object. Threat reduced correct identifications when the event was short but not long; duration of the event did not interact with unusualness. Additionally, we…

The main purpose of this study was to explore the impact of the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) armed violence on educational institutions, students' educational attainments, and the role of actors playing in school governance and redirecting the education process. This study was positioned to yield preliminary evidence which can serve as…

This study examined attitudes toward campus carry -- a policy that would permit individuals to carry concealed firearms on a university's grounds if they possess a permit. Survey data were collected from a sample of 1,380 members of a campus community -- undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, and staff -- at a medium-sized public…

Although school violence statistics indicate that schools are safe places, anxiety over school shootings continues to influence school safety reform to the extent that security measures in American public schools include the arming of schoolteachers. Furthermore, not only have youths' perceptions of school security been relatively unexplored,…

There have been 417 gun violence in schools since Columbine. In these shootings, more than 383,000 students were killed. At the time of the event, most offenders of school mass shootings were targets of school bullying, experiencing a mental health crisis, and a history of depression. Effective interventions and support that could help prevent or…

The problem is staff fear being involved in the next campus shooting, which has pushed campus safety experts to update safety policies and procedures. One of the policies being addressed is the option of allowing concealed carry on campus (CCOC). However, allowing CCOC makes some staff feel less safe. The purpose of this causal-comparative study…

Violence in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) began with its history of colonialism and battles for independence. Later, violence intensified with the politically turbulent period of the Cold War from military coups, revolutions, and civil wars. Violence expanded with the transshipment of cocaine from the Andean region through the Caribbean…