Rascals and Bullies – A study of the gender coding of violent behavior in schools

Abstract

The present study explores how schools define situations where students have been exposed to violence at school. The study is designed as case studies at nine secondary schools. The results indicate that gender influence how professionals categorize violence. The analyze reveals that physical violence is considered as masculine and relational violence as feminine. This has the effect that boys are perceived as less active when there is involved relational violence, and that girls physical violence is not always taken serious. However, gender seems to have less importance for the professional’s perception when students are involved as a group.