[MODEL] Research Log #1 - Solutionary Project 2021

Date: 9 January 2021

Name: Paige Turner
Central Question: Should Hawaii institute the death penalty?
Thesis: Although it is commonly argued as one solution for decreasing crime, Hawaii should not institute the death
penalty to reduce crime.
Essay Sections:
#1 What is the problem? What are the systemic causes? Who is hurt and who benefits? (Use three sources.)
#2: What has been and is being done? (Use two sources.)
#3: What do you think should be done? What specific actions will you do? (Use one source.)

In which section will you use this source? # 1 What is the problem?

Excerpts:

Early in the article, Carlisle explained in simple terms, “When the smaller crimes go down--the quality of life crimes--
then the murder rate goes down.”

Carlisle reported that in Hawaii we don’t have “the death penalty, but we have one of the lowest murder rates in the
country.” He continued, “The F.B.I. statistics for 1998 showed Hawaii’s homicide rate was the fifth lowest.”

Changing voters’ minds will not be easy: “Culture and religion play a role, as well as political vagaries in each state.”

Commentary and Analysis:

This website provides arguments against capital punishment. The author suggests the death penalty is not a
deterrent of crime. Surprisingly, the homicide rates of several different states that do not have the death penalty are
actually lower than those with the death penalty. Hawaii is one of these states. There are quotes from judges,
governors, and the prosecuting attorney from Hawaii, Peter Carlisle. Carlisle makes a reference to the Bryan Uyesugi
case – where the defendant shot seven of his co-workers at the Xerox copy machine company.
There is specific evidence against the death penalty that indicates it is not a deterrent of crime. For example,
even without the death penalty, Hawaii has the fifth lowest homicide rate in the nation. This proves, at least to some
degree, that a state without the death penalty can thrive as a one of the safest states in the nation. Along these same
lines of reasoning, homicide rates in the states that do have the death penalty are still high, such as Texas and
California. This indicates that the death penalty doesn’t necessarily deter crime. To ground this in more specific data,
the NY Times found that during the last twenty years, the homicide rate in states with the death penalty has been 48%
to 101% higher than states without the death penalty!
Culture, religion, politics, and the overall ideologies that dominate a community influence whether the death
penalty will remain law. In more conservative states, the death penalty is more prevalent. Interestingly, at Michigan’s
constitutional convention in the 1960s, some argued that those who were executed were predominantly poor and of
racial minorities. If valid, this is concerning as it indicates corruption in the system (a system that can end life). If the
death penalty remains, more efforts must be taken to ensure the quality and fairness of the justice system through
which they will be punished.

MLA Work Cited:

Bonner, Raymond and Ford Fessenden. “States with No Death Penalty Share Lower Homicide Rates.” The New York
Times. The New York Times. 22 September 2000. Web. 4 Jan 2004.

This is a reputable and reliable source because it was published in The New York Times Magazine and it only hires
the nation’s most highly trained and experienced writers.
 Research Log #1 - Solutionary Project 2021
Date: 26 Feburary 2021
Name: Chay Cunningham
Central Question: What are the effects of school shootings on a community?
Thesis: Although school shootings have an impact on lives of those who suffered a direct loss, they also
psychologically impact students and the community where these fatal shootings occured.
Essay Sections:
#1 What is the problem? What are the systemic causes? Who is hurt and who benefits? (Use three sources.)
#2: What has been and is being done? (Use two sources.)
#3: What do you think should be done and what do you intend to do? (Use one source.)

In which section will you use this source? #1 What is the problem?

Excerpts:

In the article, Rossin-Slater examines: “the impacts of local exposure to school shootings on an important indicator of
youth mental health through the use of prescription antidepressants.”

Rosin-Slater reports that of the 44 school being analyzed, “the average monthly number of antidepressant prescriptions
written to individuals under the age of 20 is 21.3% higher in the shooting-exposed areas relative to the references areas
in the two years after a fatal shooting versus the two years before”.

Providing help in the future may prove to be difficult as, “local areas may vary in their capacity to cope with trauma in
the aftermath of a school shooting which looks at both pharmacological and behavioral post treatments”.

Commentary and Analysis:

This article provides statistics and proof of the mental impacts of surviving students at schools where these
shootings occurred. The author suggests that numbers are higher in areas around schools that experienced fatal
shootings then ones that didn’t. Surprisingly, communities well equip with multiple mental care resources showed a
decrease in the need for antidepressants whether that was due to students being less effected by the shootings or a
larger dependance on those behavioral therapies offered. The information in this article is presented by a research team
at Stanford’s institute for Economic Policy Research. The lead researcher, Maya Rossin-Slater, looks through data of
44 school shootings within the dates of January 2008 to April 13 and compares it to the antidepressant prescriptions
filled at pharmacies around those areas from January 2006 to March 2015.
There is specific evidence of the rise in use of antidepressants during the time frame following school
shootings. Taking a look at the usage of antidepressants three years after the shooting occurred, rates increase 24.5
percent. They assume that those zero to five miles from the shooting site are looking for treatment and taking the data
from pharmacies within ten to fifteen miles away from those affected schools. It is also noted that in areas with the
highest density of psychologists and cognitive behavioral therapists, there we no big changes in the use of
antidepressant of those 20 years and under.
Understanding the mental health impacts of students who experienced a shooting is important to help take
measures later on in preventing school shootings. It shows that there is a much larger impact on youth mental health
from these shootings caused not only through the fatalities but also the aftermath in not feeling safe in school due to
those traumatic events. If school shootings continue on, we must work on understanding the impacts of the survivors
but also continue to push for change in more preventative measures to decrease school shootings as a whole and
prevent any more lives lost as a result.

MLA Work Cited:

Wong, May. “The Silent Cost of School Shootings.” Stanford News, Stanford University, 13 Dec. 2019,
news.stanford.edu/2019/12/16/silent-cost-school-shootings/.
This is a reputable and reliable article because it was published on Stanford University’s website, one of the most
selective schools in the country consisting of top researchers who contributed to this article.

Research Log #2 - Solutionary Project 2021

Date: 1 March 2021
Name: Chay Cunningham
Central Question: What are the effects of school shootings on a community?
Thesis: Although many attributes a rise in school shooting as a result to lax gun laws, the effects of teasing,
rejection, and violence in a shooters life have played a significant role in its causes.
Essay Sections:
#1 What is the problem? What are the systemic causes? Who is hurt and who benefits? (Use three sources.)
#2: What has been and is being done? (Use two sources.)
#3: What do you think should be done and what do you intend to do? (Use one source.)

In which section will you use this source? #1 What are the systemic causes?

Excerpts:

Leary explains, “social rejection was involved in most cases of lethal school violence. Twelve of the cases involved a
pattern of teasing bullying, ostracism, and at least 6 of the perpetrators had experienced a recent romantic rejection”.

The shooters violent behavior could also be attributed to “disinterested parents, a broken home, child abuse, academic
failure, or psychological problems”.

The addition of other risk factors onto rejection could increase one’s tendency for aggressive behavior: “Individuals
who not only have access to guns but who are fascinated by firearms and explosives may be more likely to act on their
aggressive impulses because they are comfortable dealing with instruments of destruction.”

Commentary and Analysis:

This article provides insight into research done over 15 school shootings between the years of 1995 to 2001
and examines the reasoning behind school violence. It goes onto explain that social rejection alongside other factors
like psychological problems and fascinations with guns or death can increase levels of aggression. Being rejected in
through teasing, ostracism, or romantic rejection can create anger and push someone towards acting with violence as a
form of revenge. Public attacks and humiliation can further push someone over the edge as it now publicly known.
Those who possess undesirable social characteristics and didn’t share similar interests were ignored which also led to
feelings of rejection to increase.
Students who experience rejection do not resort to lethal violence, but rejection combined with other risk
factors have been present in 12 of the 15 school shootings researched in this article. The three most looked at risk
factors were mental illness such as depression or schizophrenia, an easy access or fascination with guns or explosives,
and a fascination with death or violence. They go on to explain that it is unclear as to why rejection can lead to
aggression and anger. It is also thought that these perpetrators were seeking respect and wanted to prove they are not
one to be trifled with.
Creating steps towards preventing bullying and teasing at school could improve the quality of life for other
students and reduce the likelihood of violence. The findings conclude that the typical shooter in this time period was a
male student who had been ostracized by a majority of people at his school and has been chronically harassed and
publicly humiliated in addition to demonstrating one or more of these risk factors explained above.

MLA Work Cited:

Leary, Mark R., et al. “Teasing, Rejection, and Violence: Case Studies of the School Shootings.” Wiley
Online Library, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 22 Apr. 2003,
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ab.10061.

This is a reputable and reliable article because it was created and researched by a group of three people led by a
researcher at Wake Forest University in the Department of Psychology

Research Log #3 - Solutionary Project 2021

Date: 4 March 2021
Name: Chay Cunningham
Central Question: What are the effects of school shootings on a community?
Thesis: Although these shootings are directly impactful to the lives lost, it greatly effects the survivors and the
community around the area.
Essay Sections:
#1 What is the problem? What are the systemic causes? Who is hurt and who benefits? (Use three sources.)
#2: What has been and is being done? (Use two sources.)
#3: What do you think should be done and what do you intend to do? (Use one source.)

In which section will you use this source? #1 Who is hurt

Excerpts:

Hoffman says. “the feeling that those who have not experienced the crisis cannot understand the victims is related to
the isolation of the victim group(s) from the rest of the community”.

Children started forming a group identity as people who experienced a school shooting “which produced solidarity and
support inside the group but restricted their expressions of solidarity towards outsiders”.

Divisions within groups of the community were created over their own trauma: “the most radical division appeared
between the young and adults mainly because young people were more affected by the trauma than adults”.

Commentary and Analysis:

This article looks at the negative aspects of solidarity after a school shooting in a small Finish community
called Jokela. In 2007, an 18-year-old killed eight fellow students at a high school in the small Jokela village
consisting of 6000 people. A second shooting took place a year later and nine people were killed which spurred over
250 threats reported to the police. Solidarity can be defined as a feeling of togetherness and responsibility, but research
has show that it also can create new social problems and economic and psychological factors can impact the
effectiveness of solidarity after a tragedy. They research the aftermath and negative processes after the shooting as well
as the long-term impact on daily life of the community.
Their data was measured through a survey of 700 residents ages 18 and older. Residents reported a 87% less
often (meaning less than once a week, possible a couple times a month) attendance of local gatherings. It was found
that the cooperation and social participation among community members and activities were not common. 34% of
questionnaire respondents said they knew one of the eight people who died in the shooting which could then be related
to the collective trauma the community went through as a whole. It made people feel a sudden loss of a secure and
peaceful community. In the immediate days after the shooting community interaction increase and people started to
interact with neighbors and acquaintances more and the young started moving around in groups. Collective mouring
rose and rituals and memorials were created in days following the event. People started forming their identies on the
tragedy and created solidarity within the immediate impacted group but would not allow for solidarity towards
outsiders.
There was sturggles with group divisions within the community. Some people felt ready to move on as others
hadn’t. Their definitions of trauma were different and created divisions especially with the adults and surviving
students. Counselling started to be divided as youth went to the youth facility while adults and small children stayed at
the crisis center. The public started to blame the misfortunes not caused by the perpetrator themselves but inefficient
mental health care, counselling resources, and lack of community orientation. The collective feeling of shared guilt
caused them to confide in one another and increase solidarity. The young started to blame the adults for not doing
enough but still felt helpless as they could have done more too. They later felt their school was stigmatized by the
shooting. The name Jokela became synonymous with school shootings. They are now associated with a negative
phenomenon which damages their community image. It started to isolate those in the community from the outside
world as they felt ashamed that they lived there.

MLA Work Cited:

Nurmi, Johanna, and Pekka Räsänen. “The Norm of Solidarity: Experiencing Negative Aspects of
Community Life after a School Shooting Tragedy - Johanna Nurmi, Pekka Räsänen, Atte Oksanen,
2012.” SAGE Journals, SAGE Publications, 11 Mar. 2011,
journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1468017310386426.

This is a reputable and reliable article because it was made by 2 university researchers at Tampere University both of
which are faculty of social sciences and a researcher from the University of Turku who is a professor in the
department of social research who has over 100 publications online.

Research Log #4 - Solutionary Project 2021

Date: 5 March 2021
Name: Chay Cunningham
Central Question: What are the effects of school shootings on a community?
Thesis: Although these shootings are directly impactful to the lives lost, it greatly effects the survivors and the
community around the area.
Essay Sections:
#1 What is the problem? What are the systemic causes? Who is hurt and who benefits? (Use three sources.)
#2: What has been and is being done? (Use two sources.)
#3: What do you think should be done and what do you intend to do? (Use one source.)

In which section will you use this source? #2 What has been done and is being done?

Excerpts:

According to Cornell, “The PREPaRE model acronym stands for: preventing and preparing for psychological trauma,
reaffirming perception of security and safety, evaluating trauma risk, providing intervention, and responding to
psychological needs”.

More research is needed as targeting a certain psychological profile is futile “Threat assessments are an alternative to
profiling and a promising approach to violence prevention because it focuses on determining whether the individual
actually poses a threat or is engaged in threatening behavior for some other reason”.
No two instances are the same and “comprehensive violence prevention will require a range of strategies and
interventions in addition to threat assessment.”

Commentary and Analysis:

The gun free schools act was passed in 1994 as a part of the improving America’s schools act. It requires that
children who are caught with a firearm at school be expelled for a year or more. It was designed to target the
possession of firearms, but states passed their own bills to extend it to threats, assaulting teachers, and selling drugs.
Part of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 required states have polices permitting a student to
attending a safe school if they previously attended a dangerous one although it was not specifically defined what
constitutes as dangerous. New developments of higher security measures have evolved since desegregation. Measures
such as locker searching, staff supervision in hallways, locking entrance and exit doors during school hours, requiring
visitor sign in, and increase camera monitoring are some we continue to see. Some schools require badges or picture
ID’s for both students and staff to have controlled access. Increase in surveillance system, metal detectors, and access
control devices have also attempted to enhance safety.
The FBI, Secret Service, and Department of Education have recommended schools uses of threat assessments
not in profiling of suspects but in seeing signs of possible threats and attacks. The steps are as followed: evaluate
threat, decide if it is credible, decide if threat is serious or very serious, respond or conduct safety evaluation,
implement safety plan if needed. The Virginia Threat Assessment model was tested for a year in 35 schools in which
70% were considered not transient and required an apology and 30% needed protective action. Another approach is the
Dallas Threat of Violence Risk Assessment which consists of 19 risk factors that are scored to classify a student as
low, moderate, or high risk. It was intended to help schools avoid overreacting and underreacting in the case of
misbehavior. The PREPaRE model was created for school-based mental health professionals in which there are four
phases of crisis management: prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery. It helps emphasize planning with local
authorities and emergency responders.

*how is suspending students who pose as threats not dangerous to others in the school or gives them reason to take
action after a suspension?

MLA Work Cited:

Cornell, Dewey G., et al. “What Can Be Done About School Shootings?: A Review of the Evidence - Randy
Borum, Dewey G. Cornell, William Modzeleski, Shane R. Jimerson, 2010.” SAGE Journals, 1 Jan.
2010, journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/0013189X09357620.

This is a reputable and reliable article because it was published on behalf of the American Educational Research
Association which is a nonprofit organization in serving the educational research field to be practiced.

Research Log #5 - Solutionary Project 2021

Date: 10 March 2021
Name: Chay Cunningham
Central Question: What are the effects of school shootings on a community?
Thesis: Although these shootings are directly impactful to the lives lost, it greatly effects the survivors and the
community around the area.
Essay Sections:
#1 What is the problem? What are the systemic causes? Who is hurt and who benefits? (Use three sources.)
#2: What has been and is being done? (Use two sources.)
#3: What do you think should be done and what do you intend to do? (Use one source.)

In which section will you use this source? #2 What has been and is being done?
Excerpts:

The Post explains, “In dozens of cases the presence of officers didn’t deter some gun violence: Among the more than
225 incidents on campuses since 1999, at least 40 percent of the affected schools employed an officer”.

The shootings cannot be prevented by a singular precaution or security measure as “survey respondents emphasized
that nothing was more important to minimizing the violence than preparation”.

Although many see progressive gun laws as important in making a difference, some other attainable options are
possible: “The Say Something Anonymous Reporting System, which allows users to privately submit safety concerns
through a computer, phone or app encourages students to speak up if they’re aware of a potential threat.”

Commentary and Analysis:

School security has turned into a 2.7 billion market on just prevention alone (not even accounting for campus
security/officers). A survey was sent out to 79 schools across the nation and 34 provided them with answers. Half the
schools said that they felt nothing could be done about a school shooting and the other half said that having teachers
develop a deeper connection and understanding of their students who hear about these threats. In Utah’s Union Middle
School in 2016, a 14-year-old boy shot a student twice in the head. This school had a surveillance system, external
doors that needed to be accessed with ID’s and armed police/resource officers and this incident still happened.
In 2016, Johns Hopkins University did a study a felt there was limited and conflicting evidence in the impacts
on the short- and long-term effectiveness or school safety technology. Schools talk about having well-established
safety measures as most effective like drills that teach rapid lockdown and evacuation strategy, doors that can quickly
be locked, resource officers, or other adults who would be able to act quickly in an emergency. After the Marjory
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in February 2018 a huge National School Safety Conference was held. This
convention displayed tourniquet demonstrations, bullet proof doors, and fire balls (things used in combat zones in
Afghanistan). An instance back in 2018 of a High school in Birmingham, Alabama showed that they hardened security
mounting new HD security cameras, periodically checking students for weapons, and installing metal detectors, with
constant vigilance from resource officers who frequented the hallways. Although these measures were in place, a boy
had a gun and accidentally fired it, killing a girl 2 months before she was to graduate. It is frequently visited in this
article that no amount of investment in security can guarantee school protection from gun violence.
A U.S. Army combat veteran created a solution that former Special Operations agents pose as teachers in
schools. He was able to come up with a plan that would be less than $10 a month per student to keep these people
employed as they would be the most capable of keeping people safe in the event that there was a school shooting.
Businesses like Home Depot and Walmart are marketing $150 bulletproof backpacks and new pitches from different
entrepreneurs are coming out each day. Training techniques such as “ALICE” teach people how to respond to active
shooters. It stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate. Drills of “countering” and directly attacking
the shooter have become increasingly popular but many psychologists and safety experts argued it is dangerous and
irresponsible. It is meant to be used as a last resort or in discretion as schools see fit but it is also to train and prepare
students for any possibility. A school in South Carolina added resource officers, increase the number of active-shooter
drills, installed trauma kits, updated surveillance systems, and provided receptionists with panic buttons after a
shooting.

MLA Work Cited:

Cox, John W, and Steven Rich. “Billions Are Now Spent to Protect Kids from School Shootings. Has It
Made Them Safer?” The Washington Post, WP Company, 13 Nov. 2018,
www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/local/school-shootings-and-campus-safety-industry/.

This is a reputable and reliable article because it was published in the Washington Post, a highly regarded
newspaper company with experienced writers and many Pulitzer prizes.
 Research Log #6 - Solutionary Project 2021
Date: 11 March 2021
Name: Chay Cunningham
Central Question: What are the effects of school shootings on a community?
Thesis: Although these shootings are directly impactful to the lives lost, it greatly effects the survivors and the
community around the area.
Essay Sections:
#1 What is the problem? What are the systemic causes? Who is hurt and who benefits? (Use three sources.)
#2: What has been and is being done? (Use two sources.)
#3: What do you think should be done and what do you intend to do? (Use one source.)

In which section will you use this source? #3 What do you think should be done and what do you intend to do

Excerpts:

Richards noted, “The behavioral activation component that is inherent in engaging in creative arts therapies may
alleviate the negaitve alterations in thoughts and mood that are characteristics of both PTSD and depression”.

The therapies are different from regular school art programs as “these activities were designed to encourage creative
expression of emotion and feelings, improve verbal and non-verbal communication, build social support, and reduce
stress and anxiety with the help of treatment facilitators, music therapists and drama therapists”.

These activities targeting trauma-related directives not only positively impacts student’s mental anguish but builds a
stronger sense of community within each other: “In the drama group, therapists reported that participants were
particularly engaged when asked to tell and act out their stories and several chose to act out their experiences of the
day of the shooting, which sparked additional stories from other participants about how they were affected by the
shooting.”

Commentary and Analysis:

In the the time after the Parkland shooting, staff and students experienced loss and grief for those who had lost
their lives. They were afraid that this shooting could happen again when they reopened and went back to school.
People experienced constant triggers that reminded them of the event and intrusive memories and PTSD. They explore
whether creative arts therapy can help with the adverse impacts of a shooting when going back to school. These art
therapies include music, drama, visual art, and dance. It may be better for some than traditional theraapy as it is a
better opportunity for them to engage with other people and in general in a less formal setting. They hypothesize that
these creative art therapies may lessen many of the syptoms of PTSD as well as helping with depression and anxiety.
Through approaching these activities, students may better their processing of trauamatic memories through engaging in
stimulating non-verbal activities. They allow those to process traumatic events and repressed feelings at their own
paces and in a non-threatening environment with others who underwent the same experience.
They reviewed 38 studies done between 2000 and 2012 in which 76.3% of them used qualitative methods and
15.8% used quantitative methods. The overall case is that the qualitative research shows positive impacts of creative
art therapies on trauma and developing theory on clinical protocols. One of the empirical articles shpwed the improved
mental health outcomes of refugee youth who had been exposed to shootings, death, and mass violence. They found
that for these Burmese youth, it was effective in decreasing anxiety and self-contempt. One study compared a trauma-
focused expressive arts therapy with a regular arts-and-craft activits and tested this on children ages 13-18 which were
put into random groups in 1 hour sessions over 16 weeks to test which one had better impacts. They found that
children in the expressive arts therapy condition had significantly greter reduction in PTSD symptoms than those in the
treatment-as-usual condition. Another study in South Africa showed that 125 kids ages 7-13 participated in 10 cessions
of a creative arts therapy program and the symptoms of hyperarousal and avoidance decreased in the arts therapy group
compared to the control group.
44 participants were selected from a group of 61 students who enrolled in three sepearate sessions of a 2 week
summer arts program for those affected by the MSD High School shooting. A survey was given on what they
experienced as a result of the shooting whether if it was if they knew someone or saw someone get killed. They
assessed depression using a patient health questionnaire 8-item scale and they screened for anxiety with the
generalilzed anxiety disorder 7-item scale (0.9). They measured post traumatic stress through using the Childʻs
Reaction to Traumatic Events Scale which is a self-report measure (0.9). Satisfaction for the treatment program was
assessed using a series of evaluation questions designed specifically for the camp. PHQ-8, GAD-7, CRTES, and
PANAS.

Activities engaged in:

Music – lyric analysis, life soundtrack, song writing or recording, and group drumming

Visual Art – the mask, altered journal, graffitti mural, and journey t-shirt
Drama – role theory and method, projective technique, improv exercises, and relationshop lab

The first, second, and third camp sessions were 4, 5, and 5.5 months after the Parkland shooting. The camp
took place at the MSD High School and Westglads Middle School. Sessions lasted for 3.5 hours a day and held four
days per week over a two-week period for a total of 8 sessions. The majority of participants included in the sample
were either at the high school at the time of the shooting and/or knew someone killed. 31.8% reported significant
depression and 33.3% reported moderate-to-severe anxiety beform hand. 60.6% of participatands reported high distress
on the measuring of post traumatic stress. The results of the test showed medium positive reductions in postramatic
stress, depression, and aneixty and a large increase in positive affect after the treatment program. A lot of the positive
effects were seen in the drama group with a more decreased levels of PTSD, anxiety, and depression instead of those in
the music or visual arts group.

MLA Work Cited:

Hylton, Emily, et al. “The Arts in Psychotherapy.” Elsevier, 28 Feb. 2019, www.journals.elsevier.com/the-
arts-in-psychotherapy.

This is a reputable and reliable article because it was researched by a team of authors under the Department of
Psychology at the University of Miami