Carrying a Weapon to School: The Influence of Youth Assets at Home and School

• NCJ Number: 221409
• Journal: Journal of School Violence Volume: 6 Issue: 4 Dated: 2007 Pages: 131-147
• Author(s): Shawn C. Marsh; William P. Evans
• Date Published: 2007
• Length: 17 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The study examined risk factors associated with carrying weapons to school.

Abstract

Results indicate that both males and females exposed to lower levels of family conflict and higher levels of parental monitoring are less likely to carry weapons to school; however, pathways to weapon carrying might differ substantially by gender. School engagement can encourage skills that protect against violence; liking school, involvement in school activities, and perceptions that teachers care were all linked to being less likely to carry weapons. The presence of two parents in the home also emerged as a protective factor for males; youth living in a single parent homes were at increased risk for violence. Females were more influenced by risk factors such as truancy in the school domain. Older females and minority females were less likely to carry weapons to school. Environmental control in the home (privacy afforded to females with higher levels of environmental control coupled with lower levels of parental monitoring) emerged as a risk factor for weapon carrying among females. Further research is necessary regarding how environmental control in the home operates within a resiliency framework and how it might differ by gender. The finding that rural males were more likely to take weapons to school than urban males coupled with the finding that there was no difference between rural and urban females in weapon carrying suggests this risky behavior is not exclusive to urban schools. Based on the results, specific recommendations and strategies for preventing youth violence include: increasing the range of extracurricular programs available to students both during and after school hours, providing enrichment opportunities for parents to understand adolescent development and to improve monitoring skills, strengthening connections between school and families, and developing creative uses of technology for the education of parents and prevention work with youth. Data were collected from 1,619 8th and 10th grade students. Tables, references