Student Victimization in Hispanic High Schools: A Research Note and Methodological Comment

Abstract

This research note provides a descriptive analysis of survey data on self‐reported victimization at school obtained from a sample of 230 high school students who reside in a predominantly Hispanic urban area located on the US–Mexico border. Consistent with prior research on school crime, the data show that males are more likely to be victimized than females and that theft is the most frequent form of victimization experienced by the students. The data also indicate that the rate of victimization among the sample of predominantly Hispanic students is substantially higher than the national average and that Hispanic students are more likely to be victimized than their non‐Hispanic peers; a finding which contradicts recent studies showing that the rate of victimization among Hispanics and non‐Hispanics is similar. The implications for future research are discussed.

Keywords:

• Hispanic
• Sampling
• School
• Student
• Victimization

Acknowledgement

The authors wish to thank the editor and anonymous reviewers for their valuable contributions to this note.

Notes

[1] Following the events of September 11, there was a restructuring of federal law enforcement agencies and the Immigration and Naturalization Service is now part of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. The former name of this agency (i.e. the Immigration and Naturalization Service) is used herein because this study was conducted before the restructuring.

[2] Because the geographic boundaries of the BISD do not extend into Matamoros, there are questions about the legality of juveniles who reside in Matamoros attending public schools in Brownsville. However, verifying the legal residency of the more than 40,000 students attending BISD schools is impossible. Based on conversations with anonymous BISD personnel it appears that all that is required to attend school is a local address. Hence, children of Mexican residents who have access to the USA (e.g. a border crossing permit which allows Mexican citizens to cross into the border region of the USA, but limits legal access to the interior of the USA) and friends or relatives in Brownsville seem to have access to BISD schools.

[3] The assertion that many crimes in Brownsville are not reported to the police is supported by informal conversations with local police officers. One officer specifically mentioned concerns about the number of crimes not reported to the police and speculated that many local residents are hesitant to contact the police due to their unfamiliarity with the different responsibilities of the local police and the Border Patrol and to concerns about their immigration status.