Text

theses

Racial disproportionality in exclusionary discipline policies in schools and the juvenile justice system has led researchers to suggest a “school to prison pipeline” in which students of color are pushed out of the classroom and into the juvenile justice system. As exclusionary discipline policies increase, so have the numbers of school resource officers (SROs) within schools. SROs are increasingly likely to handle disciplinary offenses leading to speculation about an increased criminalization of student behavior. Increased funding for SROs has followed highly publicized school shootings, which has raised questions about appropriate role of SROs and the quality of their relationships with students. This dissertation was comprised of two related studies that drew on qualitative and quantitative methods. Study 1 was a needs assessment to determine if there is need for increased student trust in SROs. Study 2 examined the possibility of SROs using restorative approaches in their interactions with students. Specifically, the study examined the degree to which SROs felt Restorative Practices (RP) were “acceptable” and fit with their roles. RP is an intervention aimed at reducing use of exclusionary discipline in schools through a relational and problem-solving approach to conflict. Study participants included 115 students, 51 school faculty, and 11 school safety officials in two Northeastern urban high schools in the United States. For Study 1, students reported on their perception of trust in teachers and SROs, and on selected covariates (e.g., number of suspensions, race/ethnicity, victimization). For Study 1, analyses found that students reported lower trust in SROs when compared to their trust in teachers. This difference held when accounting for students’ experience with police outside of the school. The difference, however, was not found after accounting for students’ prior suspensions. For Study 2, SROs were similar to teachers in perceiving RP as acceptable and fitting well with their current practices. School faculty reported mixed opinions of student and SRO relationships noting that RP’s potential to improve relationships depended on SRO personality with some SROs being more adept at using RP elements than others. Implications are that RP is a possible intervention to improve trust between students and SROs.

ETD_7493

Psy.D.

Includes bibliographical references

by Alycia Michelle Davis

doi:10.7282/T3TT4T6Z

ETD doctoral

The author owns the copyright to this work.