Violence-prevention programs in schools: State of the science and implications for future research

This article reviews school-based violence-prevention interventions published from 1993 through 1997. All of the interventions fitting the inclusion criteria involved classroom-based curricula; about one third included efforts to change the broader school environment or other settings where youth spend their time. Modest intervention effects in knowledge, attitudes, and aggressive, violent and prosocial behavior were reported. Elementary school interventions and programs focusing on the broader school environment appeared more successful in changing violence-related behavior. School-based health-promotion programs that integrated the community and home in other health areas were used to illustrate the potential success of more comprehensive interventions. A proposed framework for future comprehensive violence-prevention intervention research composed of three physical settings (school, home, and community) and three types of environments (information, social, and physical) is presented and discussed.