Phenomenology of violence in adolescents: interdisciplinary strategies for its prevention in school contexts

Fenomenología de la violencia en adolescentes: estrategias interdisciplinarias para su prevención en contextos escolares

Fenomenologia da violência em adolescentes: estratégias interdisciplinares para sua prevenção em contextos escolares

Idana Beroska Rincón Soto idberincon@gmail.com

Universidad Nacional, Colombia

Esta obra está bajo una Licencia Creative Commons Atribución 4.0 Internacional.

The world is currently experiencing a crisis due to various causes, including the pandemic, global warming, corruption, social injustice, and violence. In this context, violence, in particular, is becoming normalized (García-Peña, 2021). According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO, 2024), 246 million children and adolescents are victims of violence inside and outside of schools.

Preventing school violence at an early age must become a concern and responsibility for families, educators (Mendoza et al., 2022), and politicians (Arias-Ortega et al., 2023), as it is a phenomenon that is sweeping across societies, cultures, races, religions, and genders. Therefore, an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary approach is needed to prevent this problem (Aranha et al., 2022).

Violence encompasses social, health, psychological, anthropological, and educational issues. However, one of the main causes of cultural decline and social unrest is the marginalization of the humanities (Marinoff, 2020).

Regarding this topic, Pacheco-Salazar, (2018) found in her study of the origins of school violence that the main cause lies within the family. The family is typically a protective factor, but it can also become a risk factor (Torremocha, 2021). Other conflicts that cause violence include alcoholism and issues of identity and migration (Raposo et al., 2021; Mora-Olate, 2021).

Musalem and Castro (2015) examined violence as a systematic phenomenon that develops and expands from various contexts, spaces, families, communities, physiologies, learning processes, and personal factors.

Today, there are multiple triggers for violence, such as sexual cyberviolence (Sánchez-Ramos, 2022) and machismo embedded in the upbringing of boys and girls (Ferreira et al., 2022).

Regarding bibliographic production on aggression and violence, Naranjo et al. (2021) point out that Brazil, Spain, and the United States are the countries with the highest number of scientific publications on the subject, with 11, 10, and 8 documents, respectively. One Brazilian study highlights that sexual violence during adolescence is one of the most prevalent forms of violence and is influenced by cultural, structural, economic, social, psychological, and biological factors (De Souza et al., 2020). Similarly, another study reported that 1,922 femicides were recorded in that country between 2000 and 2019 (Ferreira et al., 2022). These analyses were based on data from Scopus, Science Direct, and Scielo.

High levels of inequality, violence, and poverty persist in Latin America. “Latin America and the Caribbean remain among the regions with the highest poverty rates in the world” (Banco de Desarrollo de América Latina y el Caribe, 2022, para. 1); the poverty rate increased from 13.1% in 2020 to 13.8% in 2021. Countries such as Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, and Mexico have higher rates of child poverty. The findings of Durán et al. (2022) and Valencia-Londoño and Nateras-Gonzáles (2019) support these data. They warn that gender-based violence is on the rise, especially in cities such as Acasochitlán, Mexico, and Medellín, Colombia, where girls and women are victims of social, economic, cultural, and political inequalities.

In contrast, Argaez et al. (2018) report on the risks to which secondary school adolescents in Yucatán, Mexico, are exposed. They highlight the crucial role of the family as the primary environment for education and development. Similarly, Ferreira et al. (2020) warn that unrestricted online access to suggestive content can prompt self-harm or self-inflicted violence among children and adolescents.

In the Chilean context, Mora-Olate (2021) notes that schools have seen an increase in the Latino migrant population, yet diversity is still viewed as a weakness. Additionally, Chinchilla (2016) asserts that Latin America and the Caribbean remain the world’s most violent regions.

This study aims to establish a solid foundation from an interdisciplinary perspective. While the Ministry of Education has mainly focused on data collection, there has been little intervention or prevention through restorative and social integration programs (Cortés, 2023). In this context, emerging and intervening variables in the adolescent environment are identified. These include the increasing use of ICT and the internet. This highlights the need for an interdisciplinary, preventive approach to violence combined with responsible guidance on technology use (Orosco & Pomasunco, 2020).

From a practical standpoint, addressing violence should not be limited to the field of public health. This perspective is overly reductionist and simplistic because it does not sufficiently contextualize the problem across different areas districts. Violence transcends school walls (Patriota et al., 2020). In this context, it is essential to develop and execute a national and global public policy model for the prevention of psychosocial risks on a regular basis education. Countries such as Spain have developed preventive initiatives aimed at at-risk adolescents based on a multidisciplinary approach (Capella-Castillo & Navarro-Pérez, 2020).

We are trying to address the following problem: What are the best practices and strategies for preventing violence among adolescents? Our objective is to identify levels of violence among secondary school students. More specifically, we aim to identify the types of violence present among adolescents in the institution under study, determine the relationship between social violence and violence perpetrated through technology, and analyze best practices and strategies for preventing violence among adolescents. Our goal is to develop a comprehensive framework that can be applied in educational, community, and governmental contexts.

It was important to conduct this study in the classroom because it enables students to engage in communities of inquiry. These communities are characterized by active listening and respect for others’ opinions, and they prevent interruptions. It also promotes the development of thinking and language skills.

The objective of the study was to identify the types of violence prevalent among secondary school adolescents at an educational institution in Santa Clara - Ate. A mixed methodology was chosen to address this objective. From a quantitative perspective, a descriptive design was used to analyze levels of violence according to grade and gender. A correlational design examined the dimensions of social violence and violence associated with the use of technology. From a qualitative perspective, a phenomenological approach based on a review of scientific articles indexed in SciELO, Web of Science, and Scopus was adopted, complemented by content analysis.

When identifying levels of violence among secondary school adolescents, it was observed that 69.9% (n = 476) presented a low level; 27.2% (n = 185) a moderate level; and 2.9% (n = 20) a high level.

Similarly, the general trend across all grades analyzed places the perception of violence at a low level, with 69.9% of all students falling into this category, followed by moderate violence (27.2%), and, to a lesser extent, high-level violence (2.9%).

This result is consistent with that reported by Galán et al. (2022), who noted that low perceived peer violence may be associated with increased victimization and harassment. Therefore, it is important to analyze the responses more thoroughly and connect them to other study variables, since it is evident that violence exists even if it isn’t explicitly reported.

From the above, it can be inferred that violence is becoming progressively normalized in society and the classroom. However, observatories and statistics only collect data without implementing effective programs to prevent and mitigate this social, political, and cultural phenomenon. Emotions seem to be dominating, and psychological and psycho-pedagogical interventions are insufficient.

Therefore, it is essential to strengthen the ethical and moral values that guide human behavior. This need is supported by Velasco's (2021) study and the philosophical thinking skills approach—critical, creative, and caring—developed in the 1990s by Matthew Lipman and Ann Sharp, who promoted the use of philosophy in the classroom.

Similarly, Pereira and Alves's (2020) study highlights that these competencies can only be adequately developed through practical philosophy, which comprises proposals such as philosophy for children and adolescents, counseling, and philosophical consulting, among others (Wozniak, 2021). However, this discipline has been absent from the educational context since philosophy was eliminated from the curriculum in 2006.

Given that the development of free and autonomous thinking contributes to the formation of democratic, conscious, reflective, analytical citizens who are committed to caring for the environment and others, it is necessary to rethink thinking and teaching to think (philosophizing).

Several studies on the application of philosophy in the classroom with children and adolescents highlight its value in developing rational, logical, critical, creative, and analytical thinking skills (Ruiz & Herrera, 2021; Pulido-Cortés, 2019; Agundez, 2023; Sumiacher et al., 2021; Pereira & Alves, 2020; Scarpini, 2020). Figure 1 shows the results regarding the types of violence.

Figure 1
Description of levels of types of violence

The results indicate that students most frequently reported violence exercised through technological media (78.6%), followed by teacher-student violence (76.2%), physical violence (70%), social exclusion (58%), and finally, verbal violence (48%). These results should serve as a warning against the excessive and poorly regulated use of technology and the internet. These findings align with those of Mojica-Bautista (2023), who also identified a high prevalence of cyberbullying among schoolchildren.

However, there is also documented research highlighting the positive impact of prosocial behaviors on the reduction of violence among adolescents (González & Molero, 2023).

A significant association was found between violence through technological media and social violence: the greater the use of technological media, the greater the incidence of social violence. It should be noted that although cell phone and social network use is restricted within the institution, all adolescents have mobile devices with access to these platforms in practice.

Unrestricted access to social networks by children and adolescents, without content filters or adult supervision, facilitates the publication of discriminatory or sexist images or messages, memes with double meanings, as well as the editing of videos and the practice of cyberbullying. Additionally, the inappropriate use of social networks has been linked to manifestations of violence in adolescent relationships (Muñiz-Rivas et al., 2023).

The excessive and unregulated use of technology can generate a sense of alienation and a progressive loss of identity, as evidenced by the findings of Giraldo and Gómez (2023). Additionally, a growing dependence on and addiction to such media has been identified. Alemán et al. (2023) reported that some adolescents spend more than six hours a day on their cell phones, primarily interacting on social networks such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. These platforms often become spaces where they seek to ‘be’ or build an alternative identity, motivated by factors such as the absence of parental figures, low self-esteem, moral neglect, and experiences of violence.

The prolonged use of online networks and games has also been linked to compulsive behaviors and associated risks, such as grooming (sexual harassment through the exposure of images), phishing (identity theft), and other forms of digital violence. These problems have been reported in recent studies, including those by Orosco and Pomasunco (2020), Ferreira et al. (2020), Melendres (2022), Méndez-Díaz et al. (2017), and Klimenko et al. (2021). These studies warn about the negative impact of these practices on the emotional and psychological well-being of adolescents.

In contrast, the philosophical practices promoted by Lipman’s Philosophy for Children (P4C) model can foster classroom communities of dialogue. These pedagogical strategies counteract the socioemotional effects of excessive technology use and contribute to the development of rational, creative, and careful thinking skills. Creating these spaces in schools promotes critical and reflective dialogue, regulating emotions from an ethical perspective, and fostering conscious, responsible citizenship.

After analyzing the best practices for preventing violence among adolescents, it is clear that an interdisciplinary and phenomenological approach is necessary. Figure 2 illustrates that interdisciplinarity comprises three essential components: a) The integration of various disciplines, including psychology, education (Patriota et al., 2020), sociology, practical philosophy, politics, law, social work, and community social communication. B) The collaboration among professionals from different fields, and c) A comprehensive view of the examined phenomenon.

In this regard, the psychosocial risk prevention project developed in a district of Callao, Lima, stands out, which applied an interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary, and transdisciplinary approach (Romero et al., 2021). This approach allows us to understand violence as a complex psychosocial phenomenon from a broader, more holistic, and more systemic point of view.

Similarly, the political dimension plays a crucial role in these types of projects, influencing their implementation and sustainability. This is demonstrated by the study of Duarte-Acquistapace (2018), who analyzed social projects implemented in popular sectors of favelas in Brazil, highlighting the importance of the relationship between social and political actors in addressing social phenomena such as violence.

Figure 2
Interdisciplinarity as a strategy for dealing with violence
Note. Romero et al. (2021).

Duque's study (2000) suggests that interdisciplinarity is an alternative to the limitations of disciplinarity. When a solution cannot be found within a specific discipline, it may be found outside of it, as illustrated by Jacques Labeyrie’s theorem. Beyond the interdisciplinary perspective, however, is transdisciplinarity: a view that adjusts to the dynamics of a changing, complex, and uncertain society.

One example of this is evident in the current role of families. According to Cárdenas-Tapia et al. (2022), the incidence of intrafamily violence is increasing. Their study found that parents in rural areas tend to educate and discipline their children through traditional practices. In urban areas, however, there is greater concern for the academic and emotional aspects of child development.

Violence has been addressed from various disciplines, such as sociology, psychology, education, and politics. However, the way it is treated is still dominated by a coercive approach based on punishment (Guarderas, 2016). Therefore, what is required is a simultaneous and integrated intervention rather than fragmented responses from isolated sectors.

In this context, practical philosophy plays a significant role, especially through the Philosophy for Children program developed by Matthew Lipman, which has been implemented with various age groups, as demonstrated by the study of Sumiacher et al. (2021). Individuals who develop philosophical thinking skills —critical, creative, careful, and autonomous— are capable of questioning, reflecting, and caring for themselves, others, and their environment. This is fundamental for democratic and peaceful coexistence.

Figure 3
Phenomenological method as a strategy for approaching violence

Conceived as both a method and strategy, phenomenology offers an important approach to better understand the phenomenon of violence. In a context where this problem continues to increase, there is a tendency to privilege the accumulation of data and statistics without them necessarily translating into sustainable projects over time. One reason for this ineffectiveness is that it is impossible to treat everyone with the same approach. It has been amply demonstrated that violence has a multifactorial character: Biological, social, environmental, cultural, and structural factors that interact to cause it.

From this perspective, phenomenology is presented as a valuable tool that, as proposed by Husserl (1992), focuses on the lived and subjective experience of human beings. Understanding violence from the perspective of those who experience it allows us to move beyond quantitative approaches and generate more contextualized responses. This is evident in the findings of Ferreira et al. (2020), who identified that most factors associated with violence originate from the family environment.

Similarly, Mendoza et al. (2022) assign responsibilities to educators, families, and political figures. This raises the following questions: Who is responsible for adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on the internet or playing video games? Who is responsible for forming values and developing discipline? Throughout history, these responsibilities have been in dispute. Some argue that responsibility falls on parents, while others say it falls on teachers. However, everything starts at home with the family as the fundamental unit.

In this sense, the study by Barrera-Mesa et al. (2022) shows that 78% of reported cases of violence are related to the use of technology, indicating that such violence extends beyond the school environment. Therefore, educational institutions cannot be held solely responsible. As Musalem and Castro (2015) warn, this situation requires urgent, coordinated political intervention so that public policies prioritize values education, violence prevention, and strengthening the family and community.

Table 1 shows the phases of Husserl’s phenomenological method (1992) and the importance of its application from a qualitative approach in the prevention of violence today, more than ever: a) Phenomenological description: The various interpretations of violence in social, political, and family contexts, among others, as they are presented to the consciousness of the subject. b) Phenomenological reduction: Exploring the experience of violence itself, since each subject perceives violence differently, whether through technology, words, physical contact, or sexual acts; c) Intentionality involves mitigation, prevention, and understanding to prevent violence. Knowing the causes or history of violence is not enough, as long as we try to solve it, violence continues to reproduce itself. It is essential to design and implement systematic, evaluable programs with measurable impact that allow us to intervene effectively. d) Epojé: The suspension of judgment, leaving our beliefs and prejudices aside. For example, a teacher who experiences violence cannot understand or recognize it. e) Eidetic analysis allows one to understand the lived experiences of violence. However, the approach to violence uses more conventional methods, such as direct observation, interviews, statistical analysis, controlled experiments, and qualitative analysis.

Table 1
Description of violence in adolescents from the phenomenological method

Example A teenager who greets a classmate with a hard slap on the back because that’s how he interacts with his father at home does not perceive the action as violent. From a phenomenological perspective, the goal is to gain a deeper understanding of such behavior in everyday situations.

Several studies have explored this topic. Consistent with the study by Cortés (2023), violence transcends the field of health. Cortés found that technological media are emerging and intervening variables and that urgent interdisciplinary violence prevention policies are needed, as also pointed out by Escobar and Reinoza (2017) and Castillo (2025).

Moderate and low levels of violence exist within the institution under study. This is because violence is a multifaceted phenomenon rooted in society and families that is becoming increasingly prevalent in classrooms. In this context, a public policy approach based on an interdisciplinary perspective integrating pedagogy, psychology, and philosophy is necessary.

This strategy proposes the Philosophy for Children model, which offers an alternative perspective on preventing violence. When teenagers develop critical, creative, reflective, and careful thinking skills, they are capable of reflecting on their actions.

A direct relationship was observed between violence perpetrated through technological means and social violence due to exclusion. Therefore, a protection model focusing on the responsible use of ICTs and improving school coexistence is recommended, as the study’s hypothesis suggests: the greater the technology-mediated violence, the greater the social violence due to exclusion.

Technological media also perpetuate violence, requiring State intervention because internet use is not adequately regulated or censored. Prolonged exposure to this media can trigger violence on social networks, such as sexting, grooming, and phishing. Self-control and self-awareness are key to self-regulation, because being connected for long periods can have physical, academic, spiritual, psychological, and existential consequences.

Violence among adolescents must be addressed from interdisciplinary, phenomenological, and transdisciplinary perspectives. Currently, educators and educational psychologists intervene in educational institutions; however, they overlook a fundamental aspect: a philosophical perspective.

To prevent violence, it is essential to establish communities of philosophical dialogue, such as spaces for coexistence within schools. There are intervening variables, such as the family and the community in which the adolescent lives, that are beyond the school institution’s control. However, policymakers, families, and educators must work together to address this problem before it spirals out of control.

Similarly, we propose considering philosophy from a phenomenological perspective to gain a deeper understanding of violence, and implementing the Philosophy for Children program to promote autonomous, multidimensional thinking in a complex society. At the educational institution under study, the program is applied outside of class hours through philosophical workshops and communities of inquiry.

The authors declare that they have no personal, political, financial, intellectual, racist, religious, or other conflicts of interest.

The authors declare that they have not received any financial support for this work.

Type of article: Research Result Article.

Contribution: The author wrote, read, and approved the manuscript.

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