Middle school violence : a comparative study /

Abstract

An analysis of middle school violence was conducted within Mahoning County. Data was collected from 157 sixth grade students from one inner city middle school and one suburban middle school. The data collection instrument was a questionnaire that focused on eight major areas. The questionnaire asked students if they had knowledge of violent incidents at school, if they had witnessed these incidents, if they worry about these acts happening to themselves, if they had been victimized, if they had committed any of the listed acts, where these acts took place, how they got to school, and what the students did to protect themselves. The violent acts that were listed and defined on the questionnaire were robbery, rape, sexual assault, attacks without weapons, attacks with weapons, bullying, carrying a weapon other than a gun, and carrying a gun. Resulting data was analyzed then tested for statistical differences based on the type of school attended and gender. An extensive literature review is also offered. It reviews youth violence causation, victims, violence within the schools, and hurdles to overcoming the problem. Current national research is cited. Overall, it appears that Mahoning County middle schools do experience violence yet for the most part this violence comes in the somewhat traditional forms of bullying and fighting. While other incidents have occurred, the numbers are low. Results also show that violence is experienced differently between the two sets of students when compared by school type and gender. As a result ofthese findings, a recommendation was made for further research and prevention planning from within the schools.