This article summarizes the accomplishments of research on school safety in the past quarter century, identifies important gaps, and indicates promising directions for further progress. Although closely related, there are distinguishable bodies of research on physical and psychological safety. Physical safety research concerns the prevention of…

Several high-profile incidents of violence at U.S. schools have, understandably, raised concerns about the safety of students while at school. Just one incident of violence causes significant harm. In light of this, it is important to examine commonly held beliefs about school safety and violence because they sometimes reflect a misperception or…

This prospective study examined the effects of early childhood physical aggression and violence exposure on bullying victimization/perpetration and attitudes toward guns and violence in early adolescence (EA) in a high-risk sample. Participants included 216 mother-child dyads from an ongoing longitudinal study using multi-method assessments (e.g.,…

School mass murder shootings were practically unheard of prior to the 1980s. It is the purpose of this qualitative case study to explore what parents of teenagers believe are shared behaviors, social characteristics and personality traits of juveniles at risk of becoming mass murderer offenders. Being a loner or having social isolation was the…

The goal of the current study was to investigate the association of experiences of bullying with 17 individual risk behaviors in a large, non-clinical sample of middle and high school students. Data were analyzed from the 2013 Georgia Student Health Survey II, administered to 6th-12th grade students in all public schools in Georgia (n = 513,909).…

In recent years, there has been a growing social, educational, and public policy focus on investigating the correlates associated with youth carrying weapons in their communities and schools. Victimization and other correlates such as drug use and violent risk behaviors among youth have been linked to deviant behavior including weapon carrying.…

The study aimed to develop a typology of victimization based on the extent to which students experienced face-to-face (traditional) victimization and/or cyber-victimization and, consequently, manifested fear and avoidance. The sample consisted of 497 adolescents (ages 12- 18) who took the 2011 School Crime Supplement of the National Crime…

The purpose of "Theory of College Student Development" is to provide readers with new theoretical knowledge or a reminder of the foundational and evolving theories that professionals can utilize for understanding and making sense of students' behavior. Its primary focus is on the integration of knowledge, skills, and application of such…

This report presents information provided by New Jersey public schools on disciplinary infractions and their consequences for the 2018-19 school year to the Student Safety Data System (SSDS). The SSDS collects incidents of violence, vandalism, weapons, substance use, and harassment, intimidation and bullying (HIB), as well as HIB trainings and…

This study examined the psychometric properties of the Risk Assessment and Distress Recovery (RADR) Scale--a new self-report psychological screening tool for high school students that explores risk factors related to mental health characteristics of students who have engaged in school violence. The sample consisted of 1093 high school students…

The aim of the present study was to explore whether protective factors, such as ease of communication with parents, siblings, and best friends; parental awareness of student's friends and activities; higher numbers of best friends; positive perceptions of school climate; and teachers' opinion of student's academic performance, would buffer the…

To better understand how students perceive their physical safety in school, ACT surveyed high school students who took the ACT® test as part of a national administration in October 2018. Students were asked about their physical safety in school, including: (1) school climate; (2) the types of safety measures their school currently implements; (3)…

The Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is administered by the Montana Office of Public Instruction every two years to students in grades 7 through 12. The purpose of the survey is to help monitor the prevalence of behaviors that not only influence youth health, but also put youth at risk for the most significant health and social problems…

Using data from the School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), this report presents findings both on crime and violence in U.S. public schools and on the practices and programs schools have implemented to promote school safety. SSOCS collects information from public school principals about the prevalence of violent and serious violent crimes…

The 2015-16 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) is a survey of public schools and school districts in the United States. The CRDC measures student access to courses, programs, staff, and resources that impact education equity and opportunity for students. The CRDC has long provided critical information used by the Department of Education's Office…