School violence: Evidence from the economics literature and related disciplines

Abstract

School violence has become a serious public health issue during the last two decades. Consequently, researchers and policy makers have made substantial efforts to understand its causes and consequences and to identify effective methods to reduce its occurrence. While psychologists and other education researchers have long been active in school violence research, the topic has really been explored by economists only in recent years. This paper presents some evidence on this issue drawn from the growing economics literature and related disciplines. It shows that the phenomenon has an adverse effect on the level of educational attainment and labour market outcomes. Hence, reducing violence at schools not only eases life for many students who suffer because of it, but should also lead to more investment in human capital. Finally, some suggestions for future research are provided.