Quale 1

Kylie Quale
Professor Fields
Eng. Comp. 105
Filling The Gap
21 March 2019

Potentially Extending The Gap

A clear definition of “school shooting” lacks across the board when looking at research

on school shootings. There are so many types of school shootings that exist now today, e.g.,

target shootings vs. random shooting that varying definitions listed don’t allow other types of

shootings to go into other categories. These varying factors lead to varying definitions, which

create a lack of continuity across the board. In Apodaca, the research gained shows that there is a

distinction in environmental factors that directly plays a role into which type of shooting occurs

more in which school setting. For example, it was documented that a high school’s environment

was less likely to have a random rather than targeted school shootings compared to college’s

environment (372). By creating universal definitions and categorizing types of shooting it will

prevent varying factors that lead to varying definitions and create more unity to a clearer picture

and better understanding.

It’s important to have a set definition because more clear and concise research can be

done. Right now, as the research stands because there is no clear-cut definition, or even a

standard broad definition, each research study is done on a case-to-case basis. This means each

research study has their own definition of school shooting. This lack of continuity doesn’t allow

for research to pinpoint the ongoing problems with school shootings. For example, some of the

school shooting definitions revolves around shootings that happen during school vs. after school,

on school property but not in school, on a college campus vs. elementary, middle school, and

high school. Even with all these environmental discrepancies, there’s even less clarity when
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taking single gun wounds involving gang violence versus multiple gun wounds involving a

single student and the student body without gang affiliation into consideration. Setting these

boundaries in research will only make way for more correlations to be found and set the narrative

of what is really going on.

A recent research study done in 2012 by Apodaca et al., looked at environmental factors

of school shootings and found a clear separation between the atmosphere of a college campus vs.

elementary, middle school, and high school (363). Through the separation of atmospheres

associated with each type of school, it shows a direct impact on each site’s environmental factors

differently. The research was done because of the lack of research on social and environmental

factors, which they found clearly played a role in school shootings, possibly a much larger role

than they were expecting. This shows that in order to have a greater understanding, the research

of each shooting needs to be broken down even further and split between college shootings vs.

elementary, middle school, and high school shootings. Further, the separation between targeted

vs. random definitions need to be split categorically as well for one to a unified understanding. If

the shooting definitions were to be better split categorically it is possible other correlations could

be found.

Another discrepancy between definitions happens when laws that define shootings

change, and how they’re incorporated for future research and data. According to Follman et al.,

in January 2013, a mandate for federal investigation of mass shootings authorized by president

Barack Obama lowered the regulation to three or more victims killed when it was originally

defined as four (Follman et al.). This questions whether previous research should be updated

with the new regulation standard in mind or applying regulation to future incidents. Ultimately,
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tracking mass shooting is complex and an ongoing process that will continually need to be edited

and revised.

Researchers and law makers will fix this situation by setting up a universal definition of

school shootings that would split categorically down into different types of shooting based on

location (college vs. elementary, middle school high school) and reasoning behind the shooting

(targeted vs. random) will give researchers and the public a clearer understanding of what is

happening. Once a set definition and categories are established by law makers, researches will go

out into different environmental settings such as colleges, elementary, middle, and high schools,

rural, suburban, and urban schools and will collect data from those areas. The researchers will

conduct research based on social interactions of the school by interviewing students and staff

whom were witnesses to the shooting, people who knew the shooter to know if the shooting was

premeditated, and families affected by the shootings, and school officials about their bullying

policy and if the shooter was bullied and their policy implemented. Researchers will also obtain

information about environmental factors such as the city surrounding the school, the financial

allocation of money for the school, political views on gun rights. Lastly, researchers will focus

on individual characteristics of the shooters, their research will dedicate to the “why” and

reasoning behind the shooting in personal interviews with the shooters family and their political

views and opinions on gun rights and the right to bear arms. This newer categorization will

create a consensus in research to better analyze data/compartmentalize it to better look for trends.
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Works Cited

Apodaca, Roberto Flores de, et al. "Characteristics of Schools in Which Fatal Shootings Occur."

Psychological Reports, 15th ser., vol. 110, no. 2, Apr. 2012, pp. 363-77. EBSCOhost,

DOI:10.2466/13.16.PR0.110.2.363-377. Accessed 28 Feb. 2019. Abstract.

Duplechain, Rosalind, and Robert Morris. "School Violence: Reported School Shootings and

Making Schools Safer." Education, 6th ser., vol. 135, no. 2, Winter 2014, pp. 145-50.

EBSCOhost,

ezproxy.uwgb.edu:2443/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&

AuthType=ip,uid&db=aph&AN=100464126&site=ehost-live&scope=site. Accessed 28

Feb. 2019.

Follman, Mark, et al. "A Guide to Mass Shootings in America." Mother Jones, 15 Feb. 2019,

www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/07/mass-shootings-map/. Accessed 28 Feb. 2019.

Katsiyannis, Antonis, et al. "Historical Examination of United States Intentional Mass School

Shootings in the 20th and 21st Centuries: Implications for Students, Schools, and

Society." Journal of Child and Family Studies, vol. 27, no. 8, July 2018, pp. 2562-65.

Springer Science, DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10826-018-1096-2. Accessed 28 Feb.

2019.

Musu-Gillette, L., Zhang, A., Wang, K., Zhang, J., and Oudekerk, B.A. (2017). Indicators of

School Crime and Safety: 2016 (NCES 2017-064/NCJ 250650). National Center for

Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, and Bureau of Justice Statistics,

Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Washington, DC. Accessed 28

Feb. 2019
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Springer, editor. "Study Shows Rapid Rise in Mass School Shootings in the US." Phys.org,

edited by Springer, Science X, 18 Apr. 2018, phys.org/news/2018-04-rapid-mass-

school.html. Accessed 28 Feb. 2019.