Development and evaluation of a psychoeducation program to reduce violence tendencies

Initiatives to prevent violence in schools are necessary given the rise in violent incidents. The present study aimed to analyze the effectiveness of a program developed to reduce violent tendencies among middle school students. The study is a quasi-experimental one conducted with 36 students with high violent tendencies (12 experimental, 12 placebo, and 12 control) selected from 152 students in grades 6 and 7 who were attending school. The experimental group participated in a seven-session psychoeducation program designed by the researcher to reduce violent tendencies, while the placebo group attended a one-time seminar on first-level violent tendencies and was directed to social activities. The control group received no intervention. Parents and teachers participated in a one-time seminar on violent tendencies, and teachers were provided with information to help them develop a common understanding of discipline. The experiment involved administering pre-tests, post-tests, and five-week follow-up tests to the placebo and control groups to obtain the data. Data collection employed the Personal Information Form and the Violence Propensity Scale developed by the researcher. The data were analyzed using the SPSS Statistics 27 software package. ANOVA was used to assess the group and time effects of violence tendency scores together, while the Mauchly test and Greenhouse–Geisser correction were applied during the analysis process. The effect of group variables was examined using the Levene test, and Bonferroni-corrected pairwise comparisons were also performed. Following a comprehensive approach to the school components consisting of students, parents, teachers, and administrators, and through the implementation of various applications, the findings obtained in the study revealed that the psychoeducational program applied to the experimental group reduced the level of tendency toward violence, and this effect continued in the follow-up test. The studies conducted on the placebo group were also found to be effective in reducing the tendency toward violence to a limited extent, and this continued in the follow-up test. In the control group, the level of tendency toward violence decreased until the final test, but the scores rose again in the follow-up test. The study, which comprehensively covers school components, has proven effective in reducing violent tendencies, resulting in a study that can be used in school psychological counseling and guidance services to prevent violence.