NCJ Number
154813
Date Published
1994
Length
0 pages
Annotation
Intended for youth in grades 5-9, this video uses stand-up comedy/lecture and discussions with youth to consider how conflicts start, misdirected anger, how conflicts escalate, and how to resolve conflicts without fighting.
Abstract
The video features stand-up comic and former juvenile probation officer Michael Pritchard, as he uses stand-up comedy and discussions with kids to make them aware of the origins, consequences, resolution, and prevention of conflicts and violence among them. In the first part of the video, Pritchard on stage encourages kids to take personal responsibility for avoiding arguments that may escalate into violence. Pritchard leads a group of middle school students in a discussion that examines some of the "dumb stuff" that starts arguments that escalate into fights. Some of the kids express a sense of inevitability about arguments and fights and suggest that attacks require self-defense. Pritchard asks the kids whether they have ever "blown up" at a person for no good reason. Kids tell personal stories about venting their anger inappropriately at friends or family members and causing injuries. The kids also discuss some of the verbal cues that lead to escalating violence, such as being called offensive names, receiving insults about their mothers, and being falsely accused of something. Pritchard on stage tells a humorous story about two juvenile hall inmates who were too macho to back off from a fight; he exhorts kids to have the wisdom and discipline to walk away from conflict. The concluding section of the video is a discussion between Pritchard and the kids about ways to avoid conflict and violence. Suggestions include listening to the other person calmly, using words designed to calm rather than anger the other person, respecting the feelings of the other person, and walking away rather than retaliating.