TY - JOUR
T1 - Assessing the association between observed school disorganization and school violence
T2 - Implications for school climate interventions.
AU - Lindstrom Johnson, Sarah
AU - Waasdorp, Tracy Evian
AU - Cash, Anne Henry
AU - Debnam, Katrina J.
AU - Milam, Adam J.
AU - Bradshaw, Catherine P.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 American Psychological Association.
PY - 2017/4/1
Y1 - 2017/4/1
N2 - Objective: This study explored how observed features of the school physical and social environment relate to students' perceptions of school climate and how these in turn were associated with students' involvement in violence. Method: Observational assessments were conducted of the environments (i.e., disorder, illumination, adult monitoring, proactive behavioral management, and negative student behaviors) of 58 high schools using a validated assessment (the School Assessment for Environmental Typology). Student perceptions of school climate (i.e., delinquency, rules and consequences, and physical comfort) as well as their perpetration of violence were collected from 28,592 adolescents in these same schools in the corresponding Spring. Multilevel structural equation models were used to test for indirect effects. Results: A good fit was found for all models. No direct effects of environmental observations on violence involvement were identified. However, significant indirect effects on violence were found, specifically for illumination through perceptions of disorder (estimate = -.01, p =.05), illumination through perceptions of rules and consequences (estimate = -.01, p =.03), and negative student behaviors through perceptions of rules and consequences (estimate = -.01, p =.01). Conclusion: Changes to the school environment may be associated with reduced violence involvement, but only insofar as they alter student perceptions of the environment.
AB - Objective: This study explored how observed features of the school physical and social environment relate to students' perceptions of school climate and how these in turn were associated with students' involvement in violence. Method: Observational assessments were conducted of the environments (i.e., disorder, illumination, adult monitoring, proactive behavioral management, and negative student behaviors) of 58 high schools using a validated assessment (the School Assessment for Environmental Typology). Student perceptions of school climate (i.e., delinquency, rules and consequences, and physical comfort) as well as their perpetration of violence were collected from 28,592 adolescents in these same schools in the corresponding Spring. Multilevel structural equation models were used to test for indirect effects. Results: A good fit was found for all models. No direct effects of environmental observations on violence involvement were identified. However, significant indirect effects on violence were found, specifically for illumination through perceptions of disorder (estimate = -.01, p =.05), illumination through perceptions of rules and consequences (estimate = -.01, p =.03), and negative student behaviors through perceptions of rules and consequences (estimate = -.01, p =.01). Conclusion: Changes to the school environment may be associated with reduced violence involvement, but only insofar as they alter student perceptions of the environment.
KW - multilevel mediation
KW - observations
KW - school climate
KW - school violence
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U2 - 10.1037/vio0000045
DO - 10.1037/vio0000045
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84962687661
SN - 2152-0828
VL - 7
SP - 181
EP - 191
JO - Psychology of Violence
JF - Psychology of Violence
IS - 2
ER -