Preventive program of school violence based on community needs

• Grant number: 07/02146-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: September 01, 2007
• End date: February 28, 2009
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Psychological Treatment and Prevention
• Principal Investigator: Lúcia Cavalcanti de Albuquerque Williams
• Grantee: Ana Carina Stelko Pereira
• Host Institution: Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

One of the major Brazilian problems is violence. Violence causes economic, emotional and physical damage. In situations such as when pregnant women are victimized, violence may cause developmental delays in people or may worsen pre-existing cases. Therefore, it is essential to establish violence primary prevention programs. However, there is a lack of scientific Brazilian preventive programs, and, therefore, planning such programs is urgent. The school setting is pointed by reviewers and meta-analysis reviews as favorable means to the execution of violence prevention programs. The aim of this study is to develop a program to prevent school violence, which would be structured in the violence perceived in three schools and in a systematic literature review. One of the schools of the study will be located in a poor neighborhood with high rates of homicide (High Risk School). Another school will present more positive characteristics about the economic status of the neighborhood and the incidence of homicides (Moderate Risk), and the third school shall be located in a place with excellent economic and safety indicators (Low Risk School). Schools located in neighborhoods with different characteristics will be chosen because that way the program that will be made will be able to be more generally applied instead of being applied to just one school. The research will be composed of the following steps: 1) survey about the violence practice in the three schools, by questionnaire answers by teachers, 5th and 8th grade students, inspectors and principals; 2) survey on the opinion of teachers and principals on the aspects that should be part of the school violence prevention program by filling out another questionnaire; 3) identification of similarities among the three schools in terms of the violence that occurs in these schools and of the opinions of teachers and principals of these three schools, 4) systematical literature review and categorization of the most important aspects revised, and 5) formulation of the program through the analysis of literature and of the surveys.