School Counselors' Experiences With Lockdown Drills: A Phenomenological Investigation

Lockdown drills are used in pre-K–12 public schools throughout the country; however, little research exists regarding their impact on students and school staff (Ilk, 2018). Because of school counselors' role in both prevention of and response to school gun violence (American Counseling Association, 2018), we used a phenomenological approach to investigate their experiences with lockdown drills (N = 26). Results included the following three themes: (a) school counselors' sense of duty to follow school protocol, (b) unintended emotional consequences related to lockdown drills, and (c) school counselors navigating complexities. Implications for school counselors and corresponding school procedures are discussed.