School violence in Taiwan: examining how Western risk factors predict school violence in an Asian culture.

The current study explores whether theorized risk factors in Western countries can be used to predict school violence perpetration in an Asian cultural context. The study examines the associations between risk factors and school violence perpetration in Taiwan. Data were obtained from a nationally representative sample of 14,022 students from elementary to high school (Grades 4 to 12) across Taiwan. The analysis reported in this study focuses on only junior high school students (Grades 7 to 9, N = 3,058). The results of a regression analysis show that gender, age, direct victimization, witness victimization, alcohol use, smoking, anger traits, lack of impulse control, attitudes toward violence, poor quality of student-teacher relationships, and involvement with at-risk peers were significantly associated with school violence in Taiwan. The overall results suggest strong similarities in risk factors found in the West and school violence in Taiwan. They therefore point toward using similar strategies developed in the West to enhance students' positive experiences in their personal, family, and school lives to decrease school violence.