The purpose of the proposed research project is to the investigate the correlation between school policies requiring the wearing of uniforms and the incidence of physical conflict school. Using a convenience sample of elementary and school principals, a survey instrument developed by the researcher will be employed to test the hypothesis that there is negative correlation between schools with uniform policies and he incidence of physical conflict in the school. It is anticipated that the research, which will employ a sample of no less than 100 secondary school administrators, will support the hypothesis.
As violence in schools has become more and more pervasive in the nation's public schools, educators, parents and elected officials are examining ever means possible, including school uniforms, to reduce classroom tensions (Uniform improvements, 1999). Though mandatory school uniforms have aroused controversy regarding the question of whether or not such policies violate students' First Amendment rights (Wilkins, 1999), some evidence indicates that a uniform policy does reduce certain tensions and lead to a reduction in school-based violence (Uniform improvements, 1999) .Thus, the problem to be examined in the proposed research is whether or not school uniforms are negatively correlated with school violence. In other words, the research question is "Does a school uniform policy result in a reduction of physical conflict in the schools?"
In 1996, then President Bill Clinton endorsed school uniforms in his State of the Union Address, arguing that by leveling the clothing playing field, schools would reap the benefits in terms of diminished wearing of gang-related items, educed tensions between student groups, and enhanced school spirit and identification (Donohue, 1996). President Clinton had been impressed by a school uniform policy in the Long Branch, California, public school system; in 1994, that district became he first to...