The American Gun Culture: Potential Impact on K-12 School Violence

Authors

Gordon A. Crews, The University of Texas Rio Grande ValleyFollow
Garrison A. Crews, Marshall University

Document Type

Book

Publication Date

2017

Abstract

Most researchers insist on combining all school shootings/violence incidents into one type of act and therefore one type of actor and one type of event. However, public mass shootings, university environments, international incidents, and K-12 school shootings and violence are not the same. They have different catalysts, motivations, types of occurrence, and offenders. The research for this work is part of a comprehensive examination of 78 currently incarcerated U.S. K-12 school violence offenders and their acts between 1979 and 2011 in 33 states. Topics examined include: weapons used and injuries incurred, availability of guns, where the gun or weapon was obtained, the number of weapons used, the rounds of ammunition available, the number of potential victims, and the number of individuals killed or injured. In addition, these findings will be presented as they relate to an author developed four-category typology of K-12 school violence perpetrators: traditional school violence perpetrators, gang related school violence perpetrators, associated school violence perpetrators, and non-associated school violence perpetrators. This study intends to contribute to the national debate about American gun culture and the impact of interest in and availability of guns and other weapons on K-12 school violence in the U.S.

Recommended Citation

Crews, G. A. & Crews, G. A. (2017). The American Gun Culture: Potential Impact on K-12 School Violence. In C. Hovey and L. Fisher (Eds.), Understanding America's Gun Culture, pp. 133-156. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.

Publication Title

Understanding America's Gun Culture