2.        Out-of-school Suspensions as Deterrence

f frequent use of suspensions deters future misbehavior, we would expect to see a positive cycle, with high levels of suspension one year leading to improved behavior in subsequent years. Yet, according to the American Psychological Association's (2008) published review of the literature, there is no evidence that zero tolerance disciplinary policies, as applied to mundane and nonviolent misbehavior, improve school safety or student behavior. Longitudinal studies have shown that students suspended in sixth grade are more likely to receive office referrals or suspensions by eighth grade, prompting some researchers to conclude that suspension may act more as a reinforcer than a punisher for inappropriate behavior (Tobin, Sugai & Colvin, 1996). Another study, using longitudinal data on students from 150 schools in Florida's Pinellas County, found a strong relationship for both Black and White students between the number of sixth-grade suspensions students received and the number of suspensions they subsequently received as seventh-and eighth-graders (Raffaele Mendez, 2003). In sum, research offers no support for the theory that suspensions deter future misbehavior.