Date on Master's Thesis/Doctoral Dissertation

12-2022

Document Type

Doctoral Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph. D.

Department

Criminal Justice

Degree Program

Criminal Justice, PhD

Committee Chair

Campbell, Bradley

Committee Co-Chair (if applicable)

Dawson-Edwards, Cherie

Committee Member

Dawson-Edwards, Cherie

Committee Member

Widdowson, Alex

Committee Member

Fisher, Benjamin

Author's Keywords

School resource officers; behavioral intervention; discipline

Abstract

Recently there have been nationwide calls for schools to end their contracts with local police departments in efforts to remove school resource officers (SROs) due to their criminalizing effect on students. Aiming towards racial equity in safety and discipline, advocates have suggested re-envisioning discipline through a restorative lens to minimize student harm. One approach which has been promising in student outcomes are behavioral intervention strategies. The current study contributes to the literature by examining the direct effects of SRO roles and teacher behavioral intervention strategies on student suspensions. Using factor analysis, I found three SRO roles: law enforcement officer, mentor, and authoritarian. I then regressed student suspensions on SRO roles and teacher behavioral intervention strategies. SROs’ authoritarian role was significantly and positively associated with student suspensions. Teacher behavioral intervention strategies was significantly and negatively associated with student suspensions. Results suggest that teacher behavioral intervention strategies align with students interest. SROs. Policy implications and recommendations are discussed.

Download

Share

COinS