| This thesis discusses the effect that gang presence in schools has on school violence, as well as
the need for teacher support in schools. The growing research on school violence focuses on new
school policies as well as factors that affect the amount of violence in schools. Many of these
policies focus on negative adaptations, such as adding metal detectors and increased security. I
propose that teacher support in schools will decrease the amount of school violence. By using the
National Crime Victim Survey, I use a quantitative approach to measure how gang presence in
school affects school violence, which is measured by students fighting, as well as how teacher
support affects fighting. I hypothesize that gang presence in schools will increase students'
likelihood of fighting and that teacher support, measured by multiple factors, will decrease the
likelihood of students fighting in school.
Keywords: Gangs, School Violence, Strain Theory, Teacher Support, Victimization, Violence |