The Consequences of School Violence: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Statement of the Problem: In direct response to NIJ-2016-9305 for research on the causes and consequences of school violence, the purpose of this study is to conduct a large-scale systematic review and meta-analysis of studies that measure the longitudinal relations between school violence and important, policy-relevant student outcomes (Category 2). Recent research has indicated that school violence—including physical aggression, bullying, teen dating violence, hate crimes, cyber-aggression, and threats—has the potential to impact students’ mental health, school success, and potential criminality. Findings from these studies, however, are not consistent. As such, it is paramount to synthesize the various primary research findings in order to make appropriate, specific, and concrete responses to school violence in policy and practice. The proposed project will conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis using comprehensive literature searches, thorough coding practices, and state-of-the-art analysis techniques. The proposed project will commence on January 1, 2017, and end on April 30, 2019. During the first 6 months, we plan to complete a review protocol, meet with our Technical Working Group, and conduct a comprehensive search of the literature. From July 2017–April 2018, we will extract information from the included studies in order to produce an organized and comprehensive database. Quality control and data analysis will occur until the end of October 2018, and we will disseminate the results through the end of April 2019. We plan to present the findings at three national and interdisciplinary conferences that engage academic researchers, policymakers, and practitioners. In addition, we plan to write policymaker-oriented briefs, conduct a Webinar designed to engage practitioners, and publish the findings in peer-reviewed academic journals. The results of this study will provide clear, meaningful, and actionable findings that have the potential to create lasting change for students and school systems. ca/ncf