Psychological Violence and Threats to Student Safety in American Schools and Ways to Minimize These Threats

The article presents an analysis of contemporary research on threats to psychological well-being in US high schools. A meta-analysis of publications presented to the professional community on the portal: ResearchGate was conducted. 100 articles related to the problem of security in the US educational system were analyzed; as a result, 20 publications related directly to threats to psychological well-being were identified. The research is aimed at various categories of the population: elementary, middle, and high school students, students, children and adolescents with disabilities, representatives of minorities, educators, and parents. The threats identified are 1) violence in any form, from armed to sexual, 2) racial problems, 3) problems with ensuring the rights of minorities and the need to organize effective interaction with them, 4) professional burnout of teachers. Subjective and objective factors of ensuring psychological well-being in American schools are also highlighted. Objective factors include the peculiarities of American legislation, the presence of structures that ensure the safety of the educational environment and juvenile justice. National Association of School Psychologists. Subjective factors include the peculiarities of the country’s culture, in particular, the orientation toward individualism characteristic of the American mentality. Ways to minimize these threats to the psychological well-being of students include the involvement of social workers and the active involvement of parents in ensuring psychological safety at school. A three-dimensional conceptual model for improving the safety of an educational institution's environment is described and analyzed. Aspects of the model include physical, procedural, and psychological reinforcement.

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