Abstract
There are thousands of school resource officers (SROs) serving schools in the United States and elsewhere around the world, but little is known about the effects or efficacy of these officers. This essay provides a review of the research on SROs, inclusive of a summary of key findings and a discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the methodologies utilized to evaluate SROs. One of the most consistent findings is that students, teachers, and administrators view SROs favorably. Research also suggests, however, that SROs frequently treat student misconduct as criminal/delinquent activity resulting in the diversion of youths from the education system into the justice system. It is unclear whether SROs enhance student safety.
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Brown, B. (2018). Evaluations of School Policing Programs in the USA. In: Deakin, J., Taylor, E., Kupchik, A. (eds) The Palgrave International Handbook of School Discipline, Surveillance, and Social Control. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71559-9_17
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