Reporting of weapon carrying at school among US youth: Personal attitudes and perceptions of peers' attitudes

Adolescent weapon carrying is a significant school and public health concern. Previous research shows that students' perceptions of school climate predict willingness to report threats of violence. Given that adolescents often act and think according to their perceptions of peer norms, perceptions of peer attitudes regarding reporting of weapon carrying (RWC) may predict personal willingness to report peers who carry weapons. However, perceptions of peer attitudinal norms regarding RWC may be quite inaccurate and may be more influential than actual norms. To assess the accuracy of perceived peer norms regarding RWC to several different types of school personnel and community authorities, anonymous online surveys were conducted among youth in 50 middle and high schools (grades 5 to 12) in 6 states reflecting diverse regional settings (n= 35,457) between 2006 and 2012. The survey reveals personal attitudes about reporting, aggregate attitudes at each school, and perceived norms about same-school peers regarding RWC attitudes. Analyses show that pro-reporting attitudes of peers are substantially underestimated. The most common (and erroneous) perception is that the majority of students do not believe students would report weapon carrying even though most students personally think students should to some school or community authority. Multilevel analysis reveals that perceptions of RWC attitudes are highly predictive of personal attitudes—more so than actual school norms and demographic factors. Thus pervasive misperceptions may contribute to bystander apathy about peers with weapons. To support RWC, practitioners should consider promoting actual norms about RWC attitudes in their schools to help reduce misperceptions.