Duke University Alumni Magazine

There are two different types of school violence that concern us today. One we are familiar with because it is part of the everyday life at many schools. It involves the intimidation, the rage-filled flare-ups, the sexual bullying, and the revenge violence that makes school hallways and bathrooms uncertain and sometimes terrifying places for middle-school and high-school youth. The aggressors usually can be predicted from a history of aggressiveness and discipline problems.

The second type seems of more recent origin but has appeared from time to time in the past. These are the Jonesboro and Littleton tragedies. These youth who can, in hindsight, be seen to have been brooding on peer-related grievances, suddenly invade the school and kill or wound classmates who had no real part in these grievances. The arbitrariness of this latter type of violence is what shocks us, whereas we seem to come to terms more easily with the predatory or retaliatory nature of the former.

Social scientists now actually know quite a bit about the predictably antisocial youth, and this knowledge can inform our prevention efforts. Early identification and intervention with these children to help them develop anger control and pro-social skills that reduce the need to rely on aggression can be very effective when coupled with programs for parents. These programs enable them to support their child's positive development and abandon the abusive and inconsistent discipline patterns that actually promote antisocial behavior. Classroom programs are now available to help all children develop more effective social behavior and reduce the tensions and conflicts in the classroom and on the playground.

Although it is probably true that a school system that has a systematic curriculum for teaching anger control, non-aggressive problem solving, and conflict management might be less likely to have a Jonesboro-type incident, the fact is that these are relatively rare events--and hard to predict. Clique tensions such as those at Columbine High School need to be taken seriously by school authorities. Unless schools commit themselves to reducing intergroup hostility, they will not make the effort to understand student rumors and perceptions in order to prevent such tragedies. Metal detectors do some good but can be circumvented. School Resource Officers can play a valuable role but their presence did not prevent the Littleton episode. Communities must meet the need for more systematic prevention efforts that begin in the preschool years, and continue to address developmental needs of high-risk youth and their families throughout the school years.
--John D. Coie, a professor in the department of psychology-social and health sciences, directs the Fast Track Project, geared to at-risk youths

We asked fourteen undergraduates:

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