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Abstract
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VioLit summary:
OBJECTIVE:
The goal of this article by Johnson and Johnson was to review research on violence prevention programs.
METHODOLOGY:
A non-experimental literature review was conducted.
FINDINGS/DISCUSSION:
The authors reported that the most successful school programs on conflict resolution incorporated the following six principles. First, schools had to change the focus from violence prevention to conflict resolution training. Webster (1993) found that violence prevention programs produced no long-term decreases in violent behavior or risks of victimization. Wilson-Brewer (1991) found that data to support claims of reduced violence was lacking, and less than half of the programs made the claim of violence reduction. Tolan and Guerra (in press) concluded that schools implemented programs without evidence that they would work, and some programs made non-violent students more violent. In general, violence prevention programs did not work for the following reasons: 1) failure to target the violent students, 2) lack of follow-up necessary to maintain program quality, 3) use of street tactics in the schools, and 4) underestimation of the power of non-school social forces. The second principle for success was the acknowledgment that all conflicts could not be eliminated. Conflicts that were not managed destructively often had positive results. The emphasis needed to be on the constructive management of conflicts. Next, the third principle was the creation of a cooperative environment. Several studies have shown that competitive environments fostered destructive means of conflict resolution. The school environment needed to be transformed from one of individualistic competition to one of cooperative teamwork. Then, the fourth principle stated that in-school risk factors must be reduced. The three risk factors were academic failure, alienation from schoolmates, and psychological pathology. Academic failure could have been reduced by cooperative learning. Alienation from schoolmates could have been reduced by cooperative group learning and teachers following cohorts through several grades. Again, the use of cooperative learning groups was listed as a key way to lower the risk of psychological pathology. The fifth principle for success was the use of academic, or in-class, controversies as models to increase the mastering of conflict resolution skills. As a daily part of learning situations, these academic conflicts were able to provide opportunities to practice debate and verbal arguments. Finally, the sixth principle was to teach all students the skills of constructive conflict resolution. This was accomplished either by working with students as a total student body, or by training a small number of students to be peer mediators. Either method incorporated a six-step negotiation procedure: 1) definition of desired outcome, 2) description of feelings, 3) explanation of reasoning, 4) reversal of perspectives to view the conflict from both sides, 5) creation of at least 3 optional compromises, and 6) agreement on best course of action. In these programs, mediation followed four steps: 1) cessation of aggressive behavior, 2) commitment of opponents to the mediation procedure, 3) facilitation of negotiations, and 4) formalization of resolution. The authors reviewed their own literature on 7 studies they had conducted in 6 different schools. They found that prior to training, most students had employed destructive conflict management strategies. After training, the majority of students chose a problem-solving negotiation over a win-lose strategy. The amount of teacher involvement in student conflicts dropped 80%, and the number of conflicts referred to a principal dropped 95%. AUTHORS' RECOMMENDATIONS:
The authors recommended that schools incorporate peer mediation and conflict resolution programs. (CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado)
KW - Literature Review
KW - Violence Prevention
KW - Prevention Program
KW - Program Effectiveness
KW - Program Evaluation
KW - Prevention Recommendations
KW - Program Recommendations
KW - School Violence
KW - Child Offender
KW - Child Violence
KW - Child Victim
KW - Juvenile Offender
KW - Juvenile Violence
KW - Juvenile Victim
KW - Student Violence
KW - Student Victim
KW - School Based
KW - School Risk Factors
KW - Violence Risk Factors
KW - Violence Causes
KW - Peer Mediation
KW - Peer Conflict
KW - Conflict Resolution |