Examining the Determinants of Self-Reported School-Based Bullying and Carrying a Weapon

• In Event: Safety and Security in Schools

Abstract

In recent years, issues involving school safety, from acts of bullying to school shootings, have garnered significant concern. This paper uses data from a nationally-representative survey of middle school and high school students to examine whether measures of control theories (e.g., indicators of pro-social attachments to parents and teachers) and social learning theories (e.g., behavior of friends) explain the likelihood of school-based bullying and carrying a weapon. Multivariate analyses are used to examine these factors while accounting for other potentially salient factors such as bullying victimization and fighting. Analyses also examine how these relationships vary by demographic characteristics such as race/ethnicity, sex and socio-economic status. Implications of these findings and directions for future research are discussed.

Author

• Robert Weidner, University of Minnesota Duluth