School Shooters

History, Current Theoretical and Empirical Findings, and Strategies for Prevention

Bibliographic Data

ID3581747
AuthorsCaitlin M Bonanno (Fordham University), Richard L Levenson (Private Practice, New York, USA, corresponding author)
Year2014
Volume4
Issue1
Publication date2014-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSAGE Open (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2158-2440 • E-ISSN: 2158-2440
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/2158244014525425
OpenAlexW2123233948
LanguageEN
Citations received11
References cited17

Situations involving active shooters in schools have increased in recent years. We define an "active shooter incident" as an occurrence where one or more individuals participate in an ongoing, random, or systematic shooting spree with the objective of multiple or mass murders. Attempts to build a profile of active school shooters have been unsuccessful to date, although there is some evidence to suggest that mental instability, social isolation, a self-perception of catastrophic loss, and access to weapons play a role in the identification of the shooter in a school shooting incident. This article details theories and after-the-fact findings of investigations on previous school shooters, and we offer an application of Levin and Madfis's Five Stage Sequential Model to Adam Lanza, the perpetrator of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December, 2012. Prevention strategies, suggestions for positive school climates, school security for the physical plants, and threat assessments are discussed, and implications for future research are offered

Criminology · Hook · Perception · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Engineering · Gun Ownership and Violence Research · Psychology · Social Psychology · Suicide and Self-Harm Studies

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