The efforts towards reduction of violence in public schools could be jeopardized by failure to address the perceived efficacy, ethical concerns and the limited application of behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM). The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore the behavioral threat assessment's efficacy,…

As acts of violence in schools increase, schools are unprepared and in-equipped to prepare for targeted violence. This dissertation focuses on how professionals organizations are preparing educational leaders in threat assessment and how school personnel can reach out for support to community resources and agencies who specialize in threat…

College students face an increased risk of sexual violence victimization and perpetration compared to the general population. Although sexual violence experiences within this population have received substantial attention by researchers, studies typically focus on male perpetrators and female victims. Although a number of measures have been…

The purpose of this study was to gather information regarding the confidence and competence levels of school mental health professionals who are called upon to implement threat assessment procedures as part of their job duties. More specifically, the study involved comparing the confidence and competence levels of school mental health…

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…

Approximately 11 million women and five million men in the United States report experiencing interpersonal violence (e.g., sexual violence, physical violence, psychological harassment, or stalking) before the age of 18 (CDC, n.d. -a). Victims may face a decline in grades, depression, anxiety, unwanted pregnancy, substance abuse, sexually…

This exploratory qualitative study examines teacher candidate and student interactions in response to verbal threats of harm. This study uses existing data: a single set of 16 clinical simulations and four post-simulation debriefing sessions. Participants include eight female and eight male teacher candidates (n = 16) who interact with one of six…

The purpose of this study was to gain insight into the factors of resilience that educators could replicate to increase the number of socio-economically disadvantaged students that successfully complete high school and continue to become successful adults. An examination of the factors that socio-economically disadvantaged individuals attribute to…

Youth violence in both the juvenile justice system and in juveniles with intellectual disabilities is a significant and costly problem in the United States. An increasingly large number of youth with intellectual disabilities are being placed in secure juvenile justice facilities without specialized resources. In addition, these facilities are…

Microaggressions in the higher education setting are a pervasive issue frequently encountered by members of marginalized cultures. The experience of microaggressions can result in negative outcomes on neural substrates, mental health, emotional health, and physical health. Furthermore, academic microaggressions can impact performance, learning,…

Social movements on college campuses often encounter resistance by supporters of the status quo because change can be viewed as a threat to the traditions, power, and privilege afforded to the dominant population. This is evident in one case at a university where the Greek life social climate was heavily influenced by gender inequity issues and…

The purpose of this doctoral project is to better understand the complicated dynamics that appear to exist between adolescent social media use and offline interpersonal relationships, particularly as it relates to online provocation and real world aggressive behavior. This is an exploratory study aimed at obtaining first-hand accounts of how…

This Critical Discourse Analysis examined the classroom discourse of six secondary social studies teachers during lessons dedicated to the study of Africa and the Middle East. The study focused on the phenomenon of otherness and the ways in which teachers contribute to or challenge the depiction of various African and Middle Eastern populations as…

The intentional assessment and management of school climate is an essential component of a comprehensive school safety plan. The value of this preventive aspect of school safety is often diminished as schools invest resources in physical security measures as a narrowly focused effort to increase school safety (Addington, 2009). This dissertation…

Opinion polls in multiple countries recount a grim story, that people from Western and Muslim-majority countries regard one another as arrogant, intolerant, and violent, and that attitudes are not improving. Student exchange programs, which were widely expanded after World War II and during the Cold War, have become a vital component of public…