1. Regional Differences in School Safety and Violence in Elementary Schools
Alexandra Slemaker, Asia G. Perkins, Ruth L. Mayo, Natalie Flaming, & Jane F. Silovsky
University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
Alexandra Slemaker
940 NE 13th Street, Suite 4900 Oklahoma City, OK 73104
alexandra-slemaker@ouhsc.edu
(405) 271- 8858 ext. 42669
Concern regarding school safety, violence, and crime has continued to increase across the
country (Ryan-Arredondo et al., 2001). According to the National Center for Education
Statistics, common crimes that young people are committing are: the use and distribution of
illegal substances and weapons, physical attacks on peers and teachers, and theft (2015). Over
the past 20 years, the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect has collected information
about children across the country with a strong focus on their various connections with family,
teachers, and society (2014). The purpose of this study is to broaden the understanding of these
issues by identifying the types of crimes occurring in elementary schools within each region of
the country (e.g., Northwest, Midwest, South, etc.), and then identifying which region has the
highest level of crime. It was hypothesized that the South would exhibit the highest rates of
crime and violence.
Participants were 730 children, age 8, from various elementary schools across the United
States. Teachers of the children completed the School Safety Questionnaire (SSQ), a 10-item
survey to assess individual perceptions of school safety at their respective institution.
Descriptive statistics were utilized to look at the frequencies of crime in these schools
across the United States. The East has the highest rating of unsafe/high crime rates in school with
an average score on the SSQ at 19.85, followed by the Midwest (17.41), the Southwest (14.27),
the Northwest (13.95), and South (12.27). In looking at crimes happening in schools across the
country, student on student crime was led by assault (M = 2.99, SD = 7.24) and theft (M = 2.14,
SD = 5.95). Student on teacher crime was led by theft (M = 1.79, SD = 3.64) and assault (M =
1.23, SD = 6.43). Additional analyses and clinical implications will be provided.