| |||||||||
July 29, 2008The kids most likely to go armed |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: The analysis was carried out by Emmanuel Rudatsikira, from the Loma Linda University, California, and his colleagues. They showed that the variables most associated with the carrying of weapons were being male and being a member of certain self-selected racial groups. The authors point out that, "We do not believe that there are any inherent genetic differences that determine race and that affect the way that adolescents behave. We take the view that racial categorization has facilitated the distribution of social and economic resources (housing, school districts, wealth, social networks) that may consequently influence adolescent behaviors and perceptions toward violent behavior". The authors state that as the poor are likely to live in violent neighbourhoods, they would be more likely to feel unsafe and therefore carry weapons to school, "We would have expected that minorities such as African Americans, being largely disadvantaged in the United States, would be more likely to bear weapons." Rudatsikira suggests some explanations for this apparent discrepancy "If black students felt less threatened at school, it's less likely they'll carry weapons.
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
