NUMBER 1175 • 25 MAY • AGGRESSION
INDEX

	Because aggressive behaviour is often used to uphold social identities and perform role expectations, we must consider appropriate reform within the social culture within a school rather than focusing our attention on individual, “problematic” students. For example, when we overhear students speaking the language of aggression, we must be careful to not assume that their behaviour will reflect their talk and then premise our actions upon such an assumption. Practicing the discourse of aggression can help adolescents to negotiate their way within the culture. Speaking the language of violence is important to being seen as a competent youth, however, expressing an understanding of the culture of violence should not be construed as likely to translate into acts of violence (Morrill, Yalda, Adelman, Musheno, & Bejarano, 2000). The need to assert dominance was a strong theme in the interviews. Both male and female students participate in asserting dominance, although males tend to engage in asserting their physical dominance more than females. Efforts to deconstruct dominant masculinity (i.e., there is only one way to be a man), including the ways in which females participate to uphold this type of masculinity, in addition to increasing student participation and voice within the school would help the school to develop a caring learning culture. A pervasive association exists between upholding hegemonic masculinity and the use of violence ( Kenway & Fitzclarence, 1997), but schools have the power to disrupt it by working towards constructing multiple masculinities (i.e., there are many ways to be ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine;’ recognition of the fact that gender stereotypes restrict people from being fully “human”) (Martino, 1997; Mills, 2001; Ogilvie, 1996). It is also very important for schools to question their institutionalized responses to aggressive behaviour. It is important to engage in effective prevention but it is also important to stay away from simply punishing the aggressor as this reinforces student perceptions about the importance of asserting and maintaining dominance over others. Students who are aggressors and victims require support to heal their experiences of victimization (CAEFS, n.d.). Gaarder and Belknap (2002) found that delinquent girls had experiences in schools that reinforced feelings of isolation and oppression. They were not offered assistance or support for their problems, including their experiences with being victimized by others, but were dealt harshly for their offences against others. Conflict resolution training could help both staff and students. Exercises on how to assertively express one’s needs would help adults within the school move away from ineffectual punitive practices that model aggressive behaviour. Similarly, the acquisition of conflict resolution skills would help students learn that options exist between ‘doing nothing’ and using aggression when one is faced with conflict.
	DIANA NICHOLSON Nicholson, D. (2006) Taking a second look: Following surveys with students’ descriptions of the culture of aggression in a middle school. Irish Journal of Applied Social Studies, 7(1), pp. 30-55

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References Gaarder, E. and Belknap. J. (2002). Tenuous borders: Girls transferred to adult court. Criminology, 40(3), 481-517 Kohn, A. (2004). Safety from the inside out: Rethinking tradional approaches. Educational Horizons, Fall, 33-41 Morrill, C., Yalda, C., Adelman,M., Musheno, M. and Bejarano, C. (2000). Telling tales in school: Youth culture and conflict narratives. Law and Society Review, 34(3), 521-566 Mulls, M. (2001). Challenging violence in schools: An issue of masculinities. Buckingham: Open University Press Ogilvie, E. (1996). Masculine obsessions: An examination of criminology, criminality and gender, Australian New Zealand Journal of Criminology, 29, 205-226 BACK