Students' Reports of Severe Violence in School as a Tool for Early Detection and Prevention

Early detection of severe violence is a significant challenge for many schools. Three studies were conducted on samples of 6th, 8th, and 10th graders (12–16 years old). The first study, based on paired reports of teachers and students (n = 130), showed that a high percentage of both victims and perpetrators of severe violence are not identified by teachers but are known to students. The second and third studies were based on qualitative (n = 30) and quantitative methods (n = 524) and revealed the factors that explain students' willingness to report or seek help from their teachers. The findings highlight the role of victims as a source of information regarding perpetrators and suggest a new perspective for early identification of severe violence in schools.