Safe Passage: A Comprehensive Guide to Addressing School Violence

Are you a child and adolescent forensic psychiatrist, psychologist, educator, school administrator, mental health clinician, or healthcare professional seeking to understand and address school violence? Look no further than Safe Passage: A Guide to Addressing School Violence, a meticulously crafted book that offers expert perspectives and guidance on this critical issue.

Expert Insights for Professionals and Laypersons Alike

This book is designed for professionals seeking proficiency in youth violence risk assessment, but its practical and illuminating approach makes it an invaluable resource for anyone working with children or interested in addressing school violence. The editors’ unique blend of educational, scholarly, clinical, and forensic expertise has fostered a deep understanding of the complex factors that contribute to school violence.

Understanding the Complexity of School Violence

Safe Passage delves into the critically important developmental factors that can be passed on generationally, exploring how poverty, trauma, untreated mental illness, and inadequate access to education can contribute to school violence. Through case vignettes and follow-ups, the authors illustrate the range of violent situations, including bullying, cyberbullying, gang violence, and sexual violence, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of various interventions.

A Holistic Approach to Threat Assessment

The authors emphasize the importance of considering individual, school, and community variables in threat assessment, a complex but necessary task for mental health professionals and educators seeking to safeguard individuals and society from harm.

A Roadmap for Understanding and Addressing School Violence

This comprehensive guide provides a detailed exploration of:

• Subtyping aggression, with a focus on reward-seeking behaviors and impulse control in adolescents
• Identifying students at risk for violence or abuse at home and establishing a trauma-informed or trauma-sensitive school environment
• Violence risk assessment, including static risk factors, dynamic risk factors, and protective factors
• The importance of considering violence risk along a continuum rather than in binary fashion

Accessible and Informative

Each chapter includes key points and clinical pearls, providing convenient summaries of information and helping readers focus on the most important ideas. Case law is cited throughout the book, providing context for the evolution of school policies toward violence.

Safe Passage: A Guide to Addressing School Violence is a compassionate and comprehensive guide that introduces readers to critical concepts and serves as a practical resource for mitigating and preventing violence in our schools.

Published by American Psychiatric Publishing in 2019, this book is an essential resource for anyone committed to creating a safer, more supportive learning environment.