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Threats of School Violence in Pennsylvania After Media Coverage of the Columbine High School Massacre
Examining the Role of Imitation
Spencer Kostinsky, MD;
Edward O. Bixler, PhD;
Paul A. Kettl, MD
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2001;155:994-1001.
Background Following the April 20, 1999, massacre at Columbine High School, Littleton,
Colo, school administrators, law enforcement officials, and the media reported
a rash of successive bomb threats and threats of school violence that were
attributed to imitation.
Objective To establish that the clustering of threats of school violence following
the Columbine massacre was initiated by imitation.
Design A database of threats of school violence reported to the Pennsylvania
Emergency Management Agency, Harrisburg, during the 50 days following the
Columbine incident was examined to determine the daily frequency of threats.
To determine factors that predict the occurrence of these threats, counties
and school districts in which threats occurred were noted.
Results Pennsylvania school districts reported 354 threats of school violence
during the 50 days after the Columbine massacre, far exceeding the 1 or 2
threats per year estimated by school administrators before 1999. The frequency
of these threats over time demonstrated a crescendo-decrescendo pattern. Fifty-six
percent of the threats were made on or before day 10 after the incident, and
more than one third occurred on days 8, 9, and 10. Factors that predicted
the likelihood of a school's receiving a threat after the massacre included
a greater proportion of white students and larger school enrollment.
Conclusions Successive threats of violence follow a publicized act of school violence.
The media should recognize that imitation threats can occur and craft their
stories accordingly.
From the Department of Psychiatry, Penn State College of Medicine,
Hershey, Pa.
Corresponding author: Paul A. Kettl, MD, Department of Psychiatry,
Penn State College of Medicine, Mail stop MCH073, 500 University Dr, Hershey,
PA 17033 (e-mail: pkettl{at}psu.edu).
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