9 Aug 2022

78

School Violence: What You Need to Know

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It is a many-faceted problem that has made it challenging for practitioners and researchers to point to a particular and specific cause. Despite the fact that the overall crime rates in the country have reduced, the instances of school violence continue to increase in the country. The Department of Justice insists that the number of public schools that have experienced a form of school violence has increased to 81%. Some of the infamous incidences were the Columbine High School shootings that occurred in 1999 where two students killed about thirteen people and then committed suicide. In the Newton Connecticut incidence, 26 people were killed. Other incidences occurred at the University of Utah, Berthoud High School, and Grand Junction High School among other incidents ( Leary, Kowalski, Smith, & Phillips, 2013) . The paper will seek to analyze school violence in the country from a psychoanalytic, behaviorism, and cognitive perspective. 

Psychoanalytic Causes 

Psychoanalytic issues play a critical factor in school violence. No child is born violent. However, they become violent as they grow up because of the circumstances that they grew up in. Violent thoughts originate from the mind. Some of the violent thoughts are caused by the unconscious mental experiences, sexual instincts, and early childhood. A child may have had a bad experience during childhood, but the impact of the adverse experience may influence the child when they are teenagers or young adults ( Furlong & Morrison, 2010) . Some of the mental disturbances include a violent divorce. The parents of a particular child may have a divorce during the early stages of their marriage or development of their children. As the child watches the divorce, they may experience a lot of mental disturbance. The pressure and mental tension may influence the child to become violent. 

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Some of the parents are perfectionists, or they expect a lot from their children. They aspire that their children become successful in all fields. Due to the desire to have excellent children, they may exert a lot of mental pressure on their children. Some of the children may become unable to handle the mental pressure emanating from their parents and respond through violence. Also, if children constantly witness fighting in their home, they may view violence as the only way of solving issues ( Noguera, 2015) . Children can easily learn different things, and when they witness fighting, they may learn the vice as well. If they witness their parents beating or fighting each other, the behavior may be translated or implemented in the school. Due to various issues, a child may become depressed. When a child develops depression, they may become violent through bullying, threatening, fighting or even killing other children. Also, when a child lacks love and affection, they may develop mental disturbance. Ultimately, the disturbance can lead to school violence. 

Psychoanalytic causes of school violence originate from the mental disturbances experienced by children as they grow up. Guardians and teachers have a critical role in preventing mental disturbance in children. Parents should ensure that their children grow up in a peaceful environment. They may be facing various challenges, but the problems should never be solved in front of their children ( Peterson & Skiba, 2011) . Furthermore, parents should ensure that they do not exert excessive mental pressure on their children while they grow up. Different children have varying strengths and weaknesses. Parents should be supportive instead of exerting excessive pressure on the children. 

Behaviorism Factors 

The behaviorism factors explain that the behavior of an individual can be acquired through previous interactions and experiences in their immediate or social environment. Some of the interactions may involve friends, TV, and video games. Since the introduction of video games and television, mental health professionals, teachers, and legislators have been keen to understand the effect of the technology on children. One of the greatest concerns has been the increased portrayal of violence and its effect on their social learning and the ability of children to imitate or copy what they observe ( Leary, Kowalski, Smith, & Phillips, 2013) . Research on the impact of seeing violence in video games and television concluded that it had three main effects. It increased the likelihood of children reacting in harmful; or aggressive behavior towards others, it reduced their sensitivity to the sufferings and pains of other people, and they became more fearful of their environment. 

It is evident that children who spent a lot of hours watching violence or playing violent games in elementary school were more likely to develop aggressive behavior when they were teenagers. When the participants were observed into adulthood, it was evident that the children who were exposed to violence in TV and video games were more likely to be arrested or prosecuted because of criminal behaviors when they became adults. Media violence is one of the key factors that may lead to violent behaviors. The exposure to media violence often desensitizes individuals to the effects of violence in their environment. Due to the desensitizing effect, watching violence becomes quite enjoyable and may not cause the anxious arousal that occurs when violent imagery occurs in the real world. 

Media violence and violent video games is a risk factor for the decreased empathy and social behavior and increased aggressive cognition and aggressive behaviors. Therefore, it is imperative that the government, media, and parent control the violence in televisions and video games. The violence that is witness by children reduces their empathy, and they become receptive to aggressive behavior ( Peterson & Skiba, 2011) . Parents and other guardians should ensure that their children are not exposed to violent programs or video games that will affect their behaviorisms and response to violence in a negative way. Media violence has increased especially because most of the films and programs focus on violence. 

Cognitive Factors 

They refer to the patterns of thinking, ideas, and beliefs that exhibit themselves because of the interactions and experiences of an individual in their lifetime. It also describes the mental procedures of reasoning, processing information, memory, and solving problems. Various researchers indicate that violent people have different ways of interpreting and processing information. In most situations, they tend to feel or perceive hostility when there is no evidence of hostility ( Noguera, 2015) . The tendency is referred to as hostile attribution bias. Therefore, violent individuals are less effective at coming up with peaceful or nonviolent methods of solving disagreements and social conflicts. In most situations, they tend to support violence and believe that it is the most efficient technique of solving problems. 

The cognitive factors are mainly evident in young males who are members of violent gangs or groups. They often develop a belief that it is allowed or acceptable to react to any imagined or perceived sign of disrespect or problem with a form of aggression such as violence. Often, such aggressive adolescents and children tend to possess more antisocial or violent behaviors in comparison to their nonaggressive peers. The gangs often prefer the use of weapons especially guns to solve their problems. The increasing access to guns by teenagers has been increasing from the 1980s ( Sugai, Sprague, Horner, & Walker, 2010) . In fact, about 75% of all deaths that occurred due to school violence involved the use of firearms. It is estimated that about 35% of homes in the country that have a firearm have children below 18 years of age. It means that about 11 million children may access guns in their homes. 

Parents play a critical role in the cognitive development of their children. It is not a guarantee that their children will not take part in school violence but there are various decisions they can take to minimize the occurrences of school violence. Parents should observe their children to ensure they do not develop violent, aggressive behavior. They should also observe the company that their children keep. Parents should ensure that their children are not in violent groups or gangs that may influence them to develop aggression ( Sugai, Sprague, Horner, & Walker, 2010) . On the other hand, teachers can also assist by developing close relationships with their students. It will allow the teacher to observe any change in the behavior of their students. Schools can ensure there are strict rules and repercussions regarding violence and carrying of weapons to school. 

Summary 

The paper has analyzed school violence in the country from a psychoanalytic, behaviorism, and cognitive perspective. Psychoanalytic issues play a critical factor in school violence. No child is born violent. However, they become violent as they grow up because of the circumstances that they grew up in. The behaviorism factors explain that the behavior of an individual can be acquired through previous interactions and experiences in their immediate or social environment. Some of the interactions may involve friends, TV, and video games. Cognitive factors refer to the patterns of thinking, ideas, and beliefs that exhibit themselves because of the interactions and experiences of an individual in their lifetime ( Furlong & Morrison, 2010) . It also describes the mental procedures of reasoning, processing information, memory, and solving problems. The society has a critical role in reducing school violence. The main stakeholders are students, parents, teachers, and schools. They are the main victims when school violence occurs. The government and media should control the programs that are viewed to ensure that they do not encourage violence in schools. 

References  

Furlong, M., & Morrison, G. (2010). The school in school violence definitions and facts. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders , 8 (2), 71-82. 

Leary, M. R., Kowalski, R. M., Smith, L., & Phillips, S. (2013). Teasing, rejection, and violence: Case studies of the school shootings. Aggressive Behavior , 29 (3), 202-214. 

Noguera, P. (2015). Preventing and producing violence: A critical analysis of responses to school violence. Harvard Educational Review , 65 (2), 189-213. 

Peterson, R. L., & Skiba, R. (2011). Creating school climates that prevent school violence. The Clearing House , 74 (3), 155-163. 

Sugai, G., Sprague, J. R., Horner, R. H., & Walker, H. M. (2010). Preventing school violence: The use of office discipline referrals to assess and monitor school-wide discipline interventions. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders , 8 (2), 94-101. 

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StudyBounty. (2023, September 15). School Violence: What You Need to Know.
https://studybounty.com/school-violence-what-you-need-to-know-essay

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