Partner violence among adolescents in opposite-sex romantic relationships: findings from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health

Research on Law and Policy to Prevent Teen Dating Violence: Scoping Review

Teen dating violence (TDV) is a global public health issue with numerous consequences for physical, psychological, social, and emotional well-being. Thus, prevention of TDV has been a focus of research attention for the past several decades. As part of a comprehensive TDV prevention approach, programs, practices, and policies are needed. Yet, no prior research has reviewed the state of the science on laws and policies designed to prevent or address TDV. Thus, the objective of this scoping review was to identify existing global, empirical research on law and policy for TDV prevention and intervention at the municipal, provincial/state/territorial, or federal/national levels. Through comprehensive searches in eight databases in February 2022 and January 2024, we located 4,826 articles for potential inclusion. From this pool, articles were included if they focused on adolescents and on TDV-relevant law or policy at the local/municipal/school, state/provincial/territorial, or federal/national level(s), and were published in a peer-reviewed journal in English between January 1983 and December 2023. Following title/abstract screening and full-text review, 19 studies were ultimately included. These 19 studies focused on TDV law and policy content (36.8%, n = 7), implementation (36.8%, n = 7), and outcomes (26.3%, n = 5). All studies but one were conducted in high-income countries. Findings from this body of work may be useful as other jurisdictions develop TDV prevention and intervention laws and policies. Future work is also needed to understand the developmental, contextual, and policy context for TDV prevention outside of high-income, Western countries.

Measurement of Adolescent Dating Violence in Sexual Minority Youth: A Scoping Review

Effectively addressing adolescent dating violence rests on the quality of its measurement, as that has substantial implications for our understanding of prevalence, correlates, outcomes. Although dating violence is highly prevalent among sexual minority youth, the state of measurement in this population has scarcely been explored. This scoping review presents information on the measurement of adolescent dating violence in exiting studies conducted with sexual minority youth. Three databases were searched, and the ancestry approach was used to identify relevant literature published in the United States between 1992-2022 that included sexual minority adolescents aged 19 years or younger. Twenty-one articles were identified. Five enrolled entirely sexual minority samples. Sexual minority distribution ranged from 2.1%-100%. All studies operationalized sexual identity as an orientation (not sexual behavior, attraction). Nineteen studies focused on measuring dating violence behavior. Twelve reported on female and male victimization, 4 on female and male perpetration and victimization, 2 on female perpetration and victimization, and 2 on female victimization-only. Most commonly used items were from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (11 studies) and the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory (3 studies). Two studies assessed knowledge of and attitudes toward dating violence. Domains explored included rape myth acceptance, victim empathy, bystander opportunity, and dating abuse knowledge. Only two scales had undergone previous systematic psychometric evaluation. There was no evidence of cross-cultural validation in sexual minority populations. Rigorous research on adolescent dating violence measurement among sexual minority youth is greatly needed and should be given priority among researchers.

Psychological Functioning Among Latino Victims of Teen Dating Violence: The Role of Relational and Collective Resources

This study examined whether the relationship between teen dating violence (DV) and psychological functioning (depression, anxiety, and hostility) varied as a function of relational and collective resources (social support, familism, and school connectedness) among Latino teen victims of DV. Data came from a subset of youth who experienced DV (n = 95) from the Dating Violence Among Latinos Adolescents Study, a national survey of Latino teens aged 12-18 years old. Multivariate regression models showed that school connectedness was associated with lower depression and anxiety for DV victims. Additionally, five interactions were significant across depression, anxiety, and hostility: Three following a pattern of protective-enhancing (DV × School connectedness for depression and anxiety; DV × Social support for anxiety) and two following a pattern of vulnerability-reactive (DV × Familism for anxiety and hostility). School connectedness is an important protective factor for Latino teen victims of DV and one that can inform intervention efforts. Latino victims of DV benefit from high levels of school connectedness and social support, especially when DV is high. At high levels of DV familism is associated with a worsening of mental health. It is important to understand the nuances of how these resources work at varying levels of DV for intervention and prevention purposes.

The Stress of Motherhood and Intimate Partner Violence during Emerging Adulthood

Intimate partner violence is a serious social and public health problem for women. Researchers have shown the context in which intimate partner violence occurs matters, yet, prior work has not examined specifically whether motherhood, and the relationship context of motherhood, are associated with physical violence. Drawing on the Toledo Adolescent Relationships Study (TARS) (n = 492), and the stress process framework, we compared emerging adult mothers' (mothers with one child and mothers with multiple children) and non-mothers' reports of physical violence. Using negative binomial regression models, we found that mothers with multiple children compared with non-mothers reported more instances of relationship violence. We also found women in dating relationships with one child compared to non-mothers reported substantially more physical violence. These findings underscore the nature of stress and motherhood during emerging adulthood and the need for intervention strategies that target new mothers.

Relationship Between Different Types of Violence and Mental Health in High School Students From Northern Mexico

Different types of violence have been present in Mexico but there have been few studies that have analyzed their relationship with mental health in adolescents, especially in cities with high rates of social violence. It is important to compare different violence types and their relationship with mental health since not all relationships are the same. It appears that social violence has a stronger relationship with mental health, and for this reason it receives more attention, but other types of violence have a stronger relationship and do not receive as much attention. Chihuahua has been one of the most violent states in Mexico, and Juarez has been the most violent city in the world in 2009 and 2010. The purpose of the study is to compare the relationship of different types of violence (social, cyberbullying, partner violence, and child abuse and neglect) with mental health indicators (depression, anxiety, stress, self-esteem, and paranoid thoughts). There were 526 high school students, from the cities of Juarez (n = 282) and Chihuahua (n = 244). The mean age was 16.5 (SD = 1.4) years and 50.6% reported being males. The relationships among the variables were analyzed using Pearson's correlations and multiple linear regressions. Both cities that have experienced social violence like carjacking, kidnapping, and sexual assault, but they have very small or no relationships with mental health indicators. Other types of violence have stronger correlations. Our findings suggest that interventions should not focus only in preventing and dealing with social violence, but that other types of violence must also be addressed in adolescents.

Early Childhood Predictors of Teen Dating Violence Involvement at Age 17

The distal relationship between risk factors in childhood and subsequent dating violence in late adolescence has not often been explored using longitudinal data. This study aims to shed light on the problem of dating violence by examining children’s backgrounds at age 7 and the link to the future involvement in dating violence at age 17 using the first and seventh waves of the Zurich Project on the Social Development from Childhood to Adulthood (z-proso, n = 644). The sample consists of 644 multiethnic adolescents (57.14% female, M = 17.47, SD = 0.37), mainly Swiss-born (90%), though more than half of their parents (60%) were born in another country. A latent class analysis was applied to identify three different profiles (a) zero (or minimal) involvement in teen dating violence, (b) perpetrators/victims of controlling behaviors, and (c) perpetrators/victims of controlling behaviors and of physical violence. Participants who were corporally punished and/or victims of bullying at age 7 were significantly more likely to belong to the controlling and physical violence profile than children in the non-violent class. These results suggest a certain chronicity of the effects of violent experiences in early childhood on the patterns of romantic relationships at 17 years old.

Association of Teen Dating Aggression With Risk Behavior and Academic Adjustment

This study constructed a six-item Teen Dating Aggression (TDA) scale, investigated the prevalence of TDA in a statewide sample, and identified associations between TDA and high-risk behaviors and academic adjustment. Based on a review of literature, TDA included physical harm, threats to harm, verbal aggression, forced sexual contact, coercion to use alcohol or drugs, and harassment after the relationship ended. The sample consisted of 32,428 students (Grades 9-12) in 320 Virginia high schools who completed a statewide school climate survey. Participation rates were 99% for schools and 80.5% for students. Confirmatory factor analysis and hierarchical regression analyses investigated the associations between TDA and high-risk behaviors and poor academic adjustment. School fixed-effects analyses accounted for school-level influences in student responses. Nearly four in 10 students (39%) reported experiencing at least one form of dating aggression in the past year. The 12,596 students who experienced TDA (40%) in the past year reported more marijuana use (26% vs. 13%), alcohol use (40% vs. 22%), fighting (13% vs. 5%), suicidal ideation (31% vs. 13%), and suicide attempts (17% vs. 5%), as well as lower school engagement, educational aspirations, and grades than 19,832 students who dated without TDA. The current study emphasized the need for dating aggression to be a focus of secondary school prevention programs due its associations with poorer academic performance, high-risk behavior with potentially serious mental health consequences. Accurate assessment of TDA can also guide the evaluation of intervention programs that target TDA.

Polydrug Use and Dating Violence Among Emerging Adults

We examined sociodemographic and psychosocial risk factors that moderate the (poly) substance use and dating violence victimization and perpetration relationship among emerging adults. Using an ethnically diverse sample (N = 698), we used latent class analyses to identify mutually exclusive groups based on monthly and past-year substance use. We then examined these groups as they relate to dating violence victimization and perpetration and the moderating effect of various risk factors. Five classes were identified based on substance use patterns: (a) Regular Alcohol use, (b) Polysubstance use, (c) Heavy Alcohol and Marijuana use, (d) Mild Alcohol use, and (e) Occasional Alcohol and Marijuana use classes. Participants in the Polysubstance use class were the most likely to perpetrate dating violence followed by Heavy Alcohol and Marijuana use, Occasional Alcohol and Marijuana use, Regular Alcohol, and Mild Alcohol use classes. Similarly, participants in the Polysubstance use class were the most likely to be victims of dating violence followed by Occasional Alcohol and Marijuana, Heavy Alcohol and Marijuana, Regular Alcohol, and Mild Alcohol use classes. Depending on substance use class, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, history of dating violence, and trauma symptoms differentially influenced dating violence perpetration and victimization at 1-year follow-up. Our findings support the need to comprehensively address dating violence among emerging adults. Intimate partner violence prevention and intervention programs may benefit from targeting emerging adults who misuse substances and incorporating substance use interventions into dating violence prevention efforts.

Pacific Islands Families Study: Patterns of Intimate Partner Violence Among Pacific Mothers

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a widespread social problem affecting all populations regardless of gender, race, and socioeconomic status. The aims of this study were to examine (a) patterns of IPV among Pacific women living in New Zealand and (b) the risk and protective factors associated with IPV perpetration and victimization. As part of the longitudinal Pacific Islands Families (PIF) Study, maternal interviews, which included reports about IPV, acculturation, and sociodemographic characteristics, were administered at phases 6 weeks, 2, 6, 11, and 14 years postpartum. Age had a significant effect on perpetration of both minor and severe perpetration of IPV, and on being a victim of minor IPV. However, no significant effect was found for severe victimization. Cultural alignment also had a significant effect on perpetration of IPV with Pacific mothers who were strongly aligned to their traditional Pacific culture being significantly less likely to report minor or severe IPV perpetration compared with Pacific mothers who were closely aligned to western culture. Single mothers reported significantly more minor victimization, and those mothers who were more highly educated and were in a higher income bracket were significantly less likely to report severe physical IPV victimization. These findings can inform the timing and targeting of culturally appropriate violence prevention efforts in adolescence and young adulthood that focus on the development of healthy intimate partner relationships and effective methods of conflict resolution.

Dating violence, violence in social networks, anxiety and depression in nursing degree students: A cross-sectional study

AIM

To determine the prevalence and risk factors for dating violence and the correlations between dating violence and violence in social networks, anxiety and depression among nursing students.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional and correlational study.

METHODS

This study was conducted with nursing degree students at Spanish university during May 2021. A total of 248 nursing students completed an online survey. The online survey included sociodemographic variables, the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory, the Social Network Violence Scale and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Chi-squared test, Pearson's correlation and logistic regression were used.

RESULTS

Of the participants, 13.3% were men and 86.7% were women. A total of 53.2% had experienced and/or perpetrated dating violence. About violence in social networks, 22.2% of the participants had perpetrated it, and 20.2% had been victims of it. Strong correlations were found between experiencing and perpetrating dating violence. Significant associated factors were cohabitation with a partner, alcohol consumption, socioeconomic status and history of dating violence.

CONCLUSIONS

Dating violence is a serious problem given its high prevalence among the surveyed nursing students, who, as future health professionals, must know how to recognize and react to possible cases of abuse.

IMPACT

The study results add to international literature that men and women university nursing students are equally susceptible to intimate partner violence and report similar prevalence of dating violence. Also, dating violence is correlated with increased levels of anxiety and depression. It seems to be necessary to implement training programmes that help minimize the problem and identify possible cases.

Associations Between Classroom Normative Climate and the Perpetration of Teen Dating Violence Among Secondary School Students

The aim of this study was to investigate how classroom normative climate regarding the perpetration of teen dating violence (TDV) was related to adolescents' self-reported perpetration of (verbal/emotional, threatening, relational, physical, and sexual) violence within romantic relationships in the previous 12 months. Based on Theory of Normative Conduct, we hypothesized that higher classroom levels of TDV perpetration were associated with a higher likelihood of individual TDV perpetration. Data were drawn from a large survey of ninth-grade students conducted in the state of Lower Saxony, Germany (n = 10,638). From this sample, an analysis sample of n = 4,351 students at risk was drawn (mean age: 15.0, SD: 0.76; 46.6% male). More than half (54.8%) of the at-risk sample reported engagement in any form of TDV within the previous 12 months, whereby rates varied considerably by the dimension of TDV. Controlling for a range of risk factors on the classroom level (proportion of students dependent on social welfare, proportion of students with migration background) and individual level (exposure to family violence, sociodemographic characteristics, TDV victimization, and peer- and school-related factors), regression analyses showed that higher rates of classroom-level TDV perpetration were positively related to individual verbal/emotional TDV perpetration. This pattern of results was observable across all dimensions of TDV. Furthermore, gender-specific patterns of TDV perpetration were observable: Girls were more affected by classroom levels of verbal/emotional and physical TDV than boys, while boys were more affected by classroom levels of relational and sexual TDV. Results highlight the role of the wider peer context in shaping adolescent dating experiences and specifically point to the relevance of the classroom ecology for the socialization of dating violence in adolescents.

Factors Affecting Aggressiveness among Young Teenage Girls: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

Adolescence is a period of transition for developmental and social domains that may also be accompanied by behavioral problems. Aggressive behavior may be a mental health concern for young teens and is defined as a behavioral and emotional trait that may be distressing for others. This study aimed to understand the factors associated with aggressiveness among young teenage girls. A cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of 707 female middle school-aged students using multistage random sampling in Tabriz, Iran. The variables of interest were aggressiveness, general health status, happiness, social acceptance, and feelings of loneliness. Structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the data. Low parental support, low satisfaction with body image, high sense of loneliness, and lower perceived social acceptance were found to be the factors influencing aggressiveness. The current study found that the school environment, home environment, individual and interpersonal factors all play a part in aggressiveness. As a result, the contributing elements must be considered when creating and executing successful interventions to improve this population's psychological well-being.

Intervention programs designed to promote healthy romantic relationships in youth: A systematic review

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES

To conduct a systematic literature review of intervention programs designed to promote healthy romantic relationships in youth (aged 12-25 years). The focus was on universal interventions that have the potential to be effective and widely implemented.

METHODS

We systematically searched PubMed, PsycINFO, Social Science Database, and Embase. Articles were included if they were a randomized controlled trial (RCT) or quasi-experimental study and reported on a universal intervention aimed at promoting healthy romantic relationship knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors among youth.

RESULTS

The search strategy identified 27 studies (26,212 participants). Interventions were found to be effective for improving healthy romantic relationship knowledge in the target population. However, the findings were mixed for intervention effectiveness in changing relationship attitudes/beliefs, and there was limited evidence to support change across behavioral outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

This review highlights the need for future research, including high quality RCTs with longer follow-up periods in a broad range of cultural and ethnic settings, to improve the generalisability of findings. Interventions for adolescents that improve knowledge and behavioral change relating to healthy romantic relationships have the potential to reduce mental and physical health problems during this phase of development.

Predisposing Factors and Impact of Child Victimization: A Qualitative Study

Sexual abuse of children is increasing at an alarming rate. This study aims to describe the risk factors and the effects of sexual abuse on children. This unobtrusive qualitative study was conducted on children aged 10 to 18 years old who experienced sexual abuse and followed-up at a psychiatric clinic between the years 2019 and 2021. The information from case records was transcribed. Thematic analysis was performed. Thirty case records were reviewed. The mean age of the victims was 14.6 years; 94% of the victims had experienced vaginal penetration, and 23% of the cases involved incest. The results indicated that socio-psychological predisposing factors involving family structure and dynamic dysfunction, low intrapersonal strength, social influence, and low family socioeconomic status could lead to sexual victimization. This sexual victimization can then lead to emotional turmoil, negative effects on cognitive, academic and social function, negative parental reactions toward the incident, the creation of baby–mother relationships and love–hate relationships, and a lack of goals and hope for the future. Children who experienced sexual abuse may show rape or pregnancy symptoms but may also show entirely non-specific ones. A thorough examination of their history, including biopsychosocial aspects, is necessary to appropriately care for them.

Intimate Partner Violence: Childhood Witnessing and Subsequent Experiences of College Undergraduates

Previous work links witnessing adult violence in the home during childhood ("witnessing") and adolescent relationship violence, but studies are limited to recent experiences with one or two outcomes, missing the holistic viewpoint describing lifetime experiences across multiple types of violence. We measured associations between witnessing and victimization (being harmed by violence) and perpetration (causing harm by violence) among males and females for the three most common types of adolescent relationship violence (physical, sexual, and emotional), and we assessed whether students experienced multiple outcomes ("polyvictimization/ polyperpetration"). We also compared sex-specific differences to assess for additive effect modification. We used an anonymous, cross-sectional survey with 907 undergraduates attending randomly selected classes at three urban East Coast colleges. Multiple logistic regression and marginal standardization were used to estimate predicted probabilities for each outcome among witnesses and non-witnesses; additive interaction by sex was assessed using quantifiable measures. 214 (24%) students reported witnessing and 403 (44%) students experienced adolescent relationship violence, with 162 (17.9%) and 37 (4.1%) experiencing polyvictimization and polyperpetration, respectively. Witnesses had higher risk than non-witnesses for physical, sexual, and emotional victimization and perpetration. Notably, witnesses also had higher risk for polyvictimization and polyperpetration. Additive effect modification by sex was insignificant at 95% confidence bounds, but distinct patterns emerged for males and females. Except for sexual victimization, female witnesses were more likely than female non-witnesses to experience all forms of victimization, including polyvictimization; they also had higher risk for perpetration, particularly physical perpetration. In contrast, victimization outcomes did not differ for male witnesses, but male witnesses were more likely than male non-witnesses to perpetrate all forms of violence, including polyperpetration.

Female Intimate Partner Violence Survivors' Experiences With Disclosure to Informal Network Members

With the growing recognition of the importance of disclosure to informal network members (INMs) in shaping experiences for survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV), numerous quantitative studies have examined these processes, but have not provided detailed descriptive analyses of the disclosure process. Yet, these descriptive data can be a rich contribution in their own right given the dearth of knowledge about IPV disclosure. This article presents in-depth descriptive data on a Mid-Atlantic metropolitan area sample of 200 female IPV survivors' experiences with disclosure to their INMs (collected using a one-time, online survey). Most survivors (66%) disclosed to at least one INM during their initial violent relationship. The three most commonly experienced reactions to disclosure were INMs listening to the survivors' feelings, urging the survivors to talk about how they felt, and expressing that the violent partners' behaviors were problematic. The three least commonly experienced reactions were INMs blaming survivors or saying that they deserved to be treated that way, offering financial assistance, and telling them to stop talking about the incident(s). Among survivors who disclosed to their INMs, 93.9% agreed that disclosure to their INMs helped them in some way. Survivors had disclosure experiences that were relatively comparable with other survivor samples, indicating good external validity. The findings regarding reactions to disclosure were also comparable with previous studies, although the extant published literature was quite limited. Young female survivors experience a variety of reactions from their INMs, most often experiencing supportive and subjectively "positive" reactions. As the research delving into the influences and impacts of disclosure expands, close attention should be paid to how these variables are being collected and disseminated so that we have a better understanding of what happens during disclosure to INMs.

Exposure to violence, polyvictimization and youth's mental health and alcohol use in El Salvador

BACKGROUND

Community and family violence are major global health problems. Approximately 1.3 million deaths around the world and 2.5% of global mortality are due to violence. In El Salvador, youth are exposed to multiple levels of physical and emotional violence, abuse, and crime.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to investigate the various sources of violence against youth and determine the associations with mental distress symptoms, suicidal ideation, and alcohol use outcomes.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

We use information gathered in 2017 from a representative sample of 13- to 24-year-old adolescents and young adults from El Salvador.

METHODS

Data used in this analysis came from a nationally cross-sectional household survey called Violence Against Children Survey (VACS) in El Salvador. We used logistic regression models to determine the associations between lifetime witnessing violence, exposure to physical, sexual, emotional violence, and youth mental health outcomes.

RESULTS

Polyvictimization was associated with greater odds of each mental health outcome after adjusting for confounders. The strongest relative association was observed between emotional violence and mental distress. Sexual violence and emotional violence were predictors of suicidal ideation. Finally, physical violence and sexual violence were associated with alcohol use. The greatest associations were observed between sexual violence perpetrated by a parent, peer, or another adult in the community and suicidal ideation, at a magnitude of approximately six times higher odds.

CONCLUSIONS

Preventing violence against youth is likely to improve mental health and wellbeing in El Salvador and other similar contexts worldwide.

Dating and relationship violence victimization and perpetration among 11-16 year olds in Wales: a cross-sectional analysis of the School Health Research Network (SHRN) survey

Background

This study examines the prevalence of dating and relationship violence (DRV) victimization, perpetration and joint victimization and perpetration, and associations between DRV and socio-demographic characteristics.

Methods

Cross-sectional self-report data from 74 908 students aged 11–16 from 193 schools across Wales were collected and analysed using generalized estimating equations to examine prevalence and predictors of emotional and physical DRV victimization, perpetration and joint victimization and perpetration.

Results

More girls reported emotional victimization (28%) and perpetration (18%) than boys (20% and 16%, respectively). More girls (8%) than boys (7%) reported physical perpetration. However, boys (17%) reported more physical victimization than girls (12%). Age-related trajectories of DRV victimization and perpetration were stronger in girls than in boys. Students from single or step parent homes, those in care, and certain ethnic minority groups had increased odds of DRV. No association was found between socioeconomic status and DRV.

Conclusions

Age-related trajectories and the lack of social patterning by socioeconomic status point to the value of early, universal interventions, while some evidence of ethnic patterning and family structure-related risk factors suggest areas for further research and targeted interventions. DRV continues to be a major public health problem for which little UK-specific intervention evidence exists.

Perpetration of Electronic Intrusiveness Among Adolescent Females: Associations With In-Person Dating Violence

Electronic intrusiveness is a form of cyber dating abuse that includes monitoring a partners' location, whom a partner is talking to, and other private information via technology and social networking sites. The aim of this study was to further explore the prevalence of electronic intrusiveness, as well as to assess how electronic intrusiveness relates to in-person dating violence while controlling for known risk factors for in-person dating violence, namely, depression, emotion regulation, and acceptance of couple violence. Data for this study were drawn from the baseline assessment of a larger clinical trial. A sample of high-risk adolescent females between the ages of 14 and 17 with a lifetime history of prior dating violence victimization or perpetration was used. Participants completed self-report measures for all study variables. Findings demonstrate that perpetration of electronic intrusiveness within the past 3 months is common among a sample of high-risk adolescent females, with rates across various modes of technology ranging from 30% to 57%. Results also revealed electronic intrusiveness is associated with in-person dating violence perpetration after accounting for known risk factors. This study highlights the need to increase awareness of electronic intrusiveness and to better incorporate electronic intrusiveness into theoretical and empirical models of dating violence.

A Methodology Report for the Life's Snapshot Cohort Study to Investigate the Long-Term Efficacy of a Violence Intervention

Engaged bystander interventions are recognized as "promising" programming to reduce sexual violence (SV), yet little is known of the long-term (>12-month) impact of programming on SV and related forms of gender-based violence. Funded by NIH as a prospective cohort study, Life's Snapshot recruited and followed three waves of high school seniors who had participated in a large high-school cluster-randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of the Green Dot bystander intervention. This report provides the study design, recruitment methodology, recruitment and retention rates, survey items, and psychometric properties of measures included in the initial and annual electronic surveys with 24-48 months follow-up.

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Women's Past-Year Physical IPV Perpetration and Victimization in Tanzania

Recent studies of intimate partner violence (IPV) in high-resource countries suggest that men and women may perpetrate similar rates of violence against their partners, yet the prevalence and etiology of female-perpetrated IPV, especially in comparison with IPV victimization among females, remains largely understudied in low-resource, high-prevalence countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Using multivariate logistic regression models, the current study examines the prevalence of and risk factors associated with past 12-month experiences of isolated physical IPV perpetration (i.e., violence perpetrated against an intimate partner not in self-defense) and physical IPV victimization among a nationally representative sample of women of reproductive age (15-49 years) from Tanzania who completed the Tanzanian Demographic and Health Survey Domestic Violence Module (n = 5,372). Approximately 1.5% reported perpetrating violence in the past 12 months, whereas 35% reported victimization in the same time period. Risk factors of past 12-month IPV perpetration included past 12-month IPV victimization, making cash or in-kind earnings, having autonomy in decision making, and acceptance of justifications for wife beating. Women much younger than their partners had lower odds of IPV perpetration. Risk factors of past 12-month IPV victimization included past 12-month IPV perpetration, educational attainment, having children, partner's alcohol consumption, partner's decision making, acceptance of justifications for wife beating, and exposure to parental IPV. Making cash or in-kind earnings was the only protective factor against victimization. Findings suggest that female IPV perpetration and victimization may result from a combination of factors including power differentials between partners and attitudes about the acceptability of using violence. Future research directions and implications for policy and prevention efforts to reduce IPV in Tanzania are discussed.

School Violence towards Peers and Teen Dating Violence: The Mediating Role of Personal Distress

School violence towards peers and teen dating violence are two of the most relevant behaviour problems in adolescents. Although the relationship between the two types of violence is well established in the literature, few studies have focused on mediators that could explain this empirical relationship. We departed from the evidence that relates anger, emotional distress and impaired empathy to teen dating violence and juvenile sexual offending, to explore the role of personal distress, i.e., a self-focused, aversive affective reaction to another's emotion associated with the desire to alleviate one's own, but not the other's distress; as a possible mechanism linking school violence towards peers and teen dating violence in a sample of Spanish adolescents. We also explored the prevalence of emotional and physical teen dating violence, both occasional and frequent, and the differences between boys and girls. A total of 1055 adolescents (49.2% boys and 50.8% girls) aged between 11 and 17 years (M = 14.06, SD = 1.34) who had had at least one romantic relationship within the last year, completed measures of school violence towards peers, teen dating violence, and personal distress. Statistical analyses revealed that occasional and frequent teen dating violence (both physical and emotional) was more frequent in girls than in boys, and that personal distress functioned as a partial mediator, with an overall model fit higher for boys than girls: in boys, partial mediation occurred for both physical and emotional teen dating violence; in girls, partial mediation occurred only for physical violence. The interpretation of the results is tentative given the novel nature of the study, and points to the evidence of the emotional costs of school violence and the importance of emotion and behavior regulation to undermine the social costs of personal distress.

Romantic Relationship Characteristics and Adolescent Relationship Abuse in a Probability-Based Sample of Youth

This study examines the longitudinal association between baseline adolescent romantic relationship characteristics and later adolescent relationship abuse (ARA). Data are from the first two waves of the National Survey on Teen Relationships and Intimate Violence (STRiV). Girls and boys ages 10 to 18 were recruited randomly from the children of adults participating in a larger national household probability sample panel. About three quarters of the sample identified as White, non-Hispanic. Controlling behavior by a romantic partner consistently predicted later ARA. Higher levels of controlling behavior in the relationship was associated with higher rates of sexual and/or physical ARA victimization and higher rates for similar acts of perpetration. More controlling behavior by the partner was also associated with higher rates of psychological ARA victimization (and higher rates for psychological ARA perpetration). Our results suggest that ARA prevention programs should have explicit discussions of the deleterious effects of controlling behavior with adolescents. Respondents reporting higher feelings of passionate love were also at higher risk of experiencing sexual and/or physical ARA victimization. This finding will need to be considered by clinicians and prevention specialist in their work with youth as a potential risk marker for ARA. Baseline reports of at least one form of ARA were predictive of 1-year follow-up rates of ARA in all of our models, underscoring a long line of research that past aggressive or violent behavior is one of the strongest predictors of current aggressive or violent behavior. We also observed that female respondents were twice as likely to be perpetrators of physical and/or sexual ARA as male respondents. Prevention messaging often is focused on girls as ARA victims and our results imply that messaging should also be directed toward girls as perpetrators.

Emancipated Foster Youth and Intimate Partner Violence: An Exploration of Risk and Protective Factors

Due to their high rates of parental maltreatment and violence exposure, youth in the foster care system are considered particularly vulnerable to experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) in adolescence and young adulthood. Those who have emancipated from foster care may be at a heightened risk, as they are significantly more likely to struggle in a variety of critical domains (i.e., mental health, substance use, and delinquency). This longitudinal study is the first to explore the impact of demographic, individual, family, and foster care system factors on IPV involvement for foster care alumni at age 23/24. Analyses were conducted on three waves of quantitative data from the Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth (the Midwest Study). We find that approximately 21% of the young adults in our sample were involved in some type of IPV at age 23/24, with bidirectional violence the most commonly reported form. Males were more likely than females to report IPV victimization, whereas females were more likely than males to report IPV perpetration and bidirectional violence. Young adults who reported parental IPV prior to foster care entry were more likely to be involved in bidirectionally violent partnerships than nonviolent partnerships in young adulthood, as were young adults who reported neglect by a foster caregiver and those who reported greater placement instability while in the foster care system. Anxiety at baseline increased the odds of IPV perpetration at age 23/24, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at baseline decreased the odds of IPV perpetration at age 23/24. Understanding the characteristics and experiences that place these young adults at risk for IPV will allow for more effective and targeted prevention efforts.

Romantic Relationship Churn in Early Adolescence Predicts Hostility, Abuse, and Avoidance in Relationships Into Early Adulthood

This study examined early adolescent romantic "churning," defined here as having a large number of boyfriends/girlfriends by age 13, as a problematic marker likely to predict hostility, abuse, and avoidance during conflict in later relationships. A sample of 184 adolescents was followed through age 24 to assess predictions of hostility, abuse, and avoidance during conflict from early romantic churning. Controlling for gender and family income, romantic churning at age 13 predicted relative decreases in peer preference and relative increases in conflict and betrayal in close friendships from ages 13-16, as well as higher observable hostility and self and partner-reported abuse in romantic relationships by age 18 and greater avoidance during conflict with romantic partners by age 24. Findings remained after accounting for attachment security, social competence, and friendship quality in early adolescence, suggesting that early romantic churning may uniquely predict a problematic developmental pathway.

Sex-Based Differences in Criminal Victimization of Adolescents: A Meta-Analysis

While general criminological theories, including low self-control, social bonds, routine activities, and risky lifestyles are increasingly used to explain criminal victimization, there is some evidence these theories may omit important sex differences. To date, the empirical evidence remains mixed, which may be an artifact of methodological differences. This study used three-level meta-analytic methods to assess the use of various predictors derived from criminological theory on a variety of criminal victimization types, sample characteristics, and differences in research design. In a total sample of 166,650 females and 129,988 males in 115 studies using 95 unique datasets of adolescents (average age = 10-19), the meta-analysis revealed that elements of risky lifestyles are largely sex-neutral, while some sex-specific effects of bonds, routine activities, and prior victimization are observed. Implications for criminological theory, developmental and life course research on adolescent victimization, and avenues for prevention are discussed.

Profiles of Adolescent Relationship Abuse and Sexual Harassment: a Latent Class Analysis

This study aims to identify homogeneous groups of individuals based on self-reported victimization and perpetration of three subtypes of adolescent relationship abuse (ARA; physical, psychological, and sexual) and sexual harassment (SH). Study sample consists of 645 current or past-year daters aged 12-21, drawn from the National Survey on Teen Relationships and Intimate Violence (STRiV). Latent class analysis was used to classify individuals, and a three-class model was selected (Low ARA-Low SH, High ARA-High SH, and Psychological ARA-Medium SH). Results provide evidence for three latent classes with varying patterns of ARA and SH. A number of exogenous variables were significantly associated with these patterns, e.g., youth who were previously exposed to any general violence were three times as likely to be in the High ARA-High SH class as those not previously exposed to violence. Adolescent relationship abuse prevention efforts should include activities to address sexual harassment, and vice versa. Results call for universal preventive intervention programs targeting adolescent relationship abuse and sexual harassment to start as early as adolescence, and the existence of the High ARA-High SH group supports the need for more targeted effort to interrupt such patterns.

The Effects of a Health Care-Based Brief Intervention on Dating Abuse Perpetration: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial

Dating abuse (DA) is prevalent and consequential, yet there are no evidence-based interventions for the health care setting that prevent perpetration. The current study's purpose was to test a one-session brief motivational interview-style intervention to decrease DA perpetration. We conducted a two-arm RCT of the Real Talk intervention with follow-up at 3 and 6 months. Participants were 172 youth ages 15-19 years old, recruited from the pediatric emergency department or outpatient care services of an urban hospital in the USA in 2014-2017. The primary outcome was change in self-reported DA perpetration, including subtypes of DA such as physical, sexual, psychological, and cyber DA. Youth in both intervention and control arms reduced DA perpetration over time. GEE models indicated no overall intervention effects for any, physical, sexual, or psychological DA. There were overall effects for cyber DA (RR 0.49, 95% CI 0.27, 0.87). There were also effects at 3 months for psychological DA (RR 0.24, 95% CI 0.06, 0.93) and cyber DA (RR 0.39, 95% CI 0.19, 0.79). Analyses stratified by gender also found overall effects for males for any DA (RR 0.20, 95% CI 0.07, 0.55), physical DA (RR 0.30, 95% CI 0.10, 0.89), and cyber DA (RR 0.04, 95% CI 0.01, 0.27). For males, intervention effects on any DA persisted to 6 months (RR 0.13, 95% CI 0.02, 1.01). This health care-based one-session DA intervention is a potentially promising approach to reduce DA perpetration among adolescents.Clinical trial registration: This study is registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov NCT02080923.

Dynamic Change Between Intimate Partner Violence and Contraceptive Use Over Time in Young Adult Men's and Women's Relationships

The negative association between intimate partner violence (IPV) and contraceptive use is well established, but much of this research treats the association as static (e.g., similar across all relationships over development or time). Such studies do not account for individual development of sexual and romantic relationship mental, social, and behavioral well-being, which relate to contraceptive use. These studies are also predominantly woman-focused; such work could be complemented by examining men's associations. The current study examined how associations between sexual and physical IPV and consistent condom and birth control (BC) use changed across up to seven sequential relationships in young adulthood over a five-year period within a nationally representative sample. Results indicated that physical IPV-contraception associations were significant only across earliest or latest relationships. Sexual IPV-contraception associations were significant over more relationships but often changed in valence (negative to positive). There were few significant differences in these associations between men and women. Developmental context (e.g., prior relationship/IPV experience) may be important when considering IPV-contraception associations. In addition, although the IPV-contraception association does not appear to be a unique problem for women, research needs to explore how underlying mechanisms explaining this association may be a result of gendered and nongendered contexts.

Patterns of Help-Seeking Behavior Among Victims of Teen Dating Violence and Abuse: Variations Among Boys and Girls

BACKGROUND

Despite the extensive research on rates of teen dating violence and abuse and its' consequences, less is known about help-seeking behaviors among victims. The goals of this study were to document patterns of help-seeking behaviors among teen victims of dating violence and abuse and examine sex differences related to such patterns.

METHODS

The study involved cross-sectional surveys of 3745 dating youth from 10 middle and high schools in the northeastern United States, 59% of whom reported some kind of dating abuse victimization. We examined the characteristics of youth who reported any type of dating abuse victimization comparing youth who reported seeking help to youth who did not report seeking help following their victimization.

RESULTS

Only 9% of victims reported seeking help after their victimization experience. Help-seeking differed significantly by sex; female victims were more likely to seek help than male victims, and the types of dating abuse that help-seekers experienced also varied by sex. Overall, 17% of youth sought help from school counselors and 13% sought help from teachers.

CONCLUSIONS

Results suggest that help-seeking behavior is very uncommon among victim populations, particularly if they are not part of specific dating violence prevention programs. In addition, we found female victims were nearly 2 times more likely to seek help than male victims. Given that few youth seek help on their own, schools might create more formalized reporting mechanisms to ensure such violence is addressed effectively and efficiently, and create peer and parental support networks to build awareness and create comfort for victims.

Adolescent Relationship Quality: Is There an Intergenerational Link?

OBJECTIVE

This study examines intergenerational continuities in relationship instability, general relationship quality, and intimate partner violence (IPV) between mothers and adolescents.

BACKGROUND

A growing body of literature has observed similarities in relationship quality between parents and their adult offspring. Less attention has focused on whether intergenerational continuities are present in adolescent relationships.

METHOD

Using age 3, 5, 9, and 15 data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing birth cohort study (N=3,162), the authors examined associations between maternal reports of relationship instability, general quality, and IPV in early and middle childhood and similar adolescent reports at age 15. Variations based on timing and persistence of exposures were considered.

RESULTS

In general, exposures to low-quality maternal relationships were associated with higher risk of forming adolescent partnerships and lower relationship quality. Intergenerational links in quality were predominantly construct-specific, consistent with observational learning processes. Adolescents exposed to maternal relationships of poor general quality in middle childhood were less likely to report high-quality relationships themselves, and those exposed to any maternal physical IPV victimization during childhood were more likely to perpetrate IPV in their own relationships. Exposure to maternal relationship instability in both early and middle childhood was associated with more adolescent romantic partners.

CONCLUSION

The study illuminates additional pathways through which healthy and unhealthy relationships are reproduced across generations.

Sex and age effects in past-year experiences of violence amongst adolescents in five countries

Purpose

To date, there has been insufficient focus on age and sex differences in studies of violence amongst adolescents and young adults in low- and middle-income countries. As adolescence is a formative period during which experiencing violence can have both short- and long-term consequences, we aim to investigate experiences of violence by age and sex across five countries.

Methods

Incidences of past-year violence victimization were estimated by sex across two-year age bands (13–24 years) using Violence Against Children Survey datasets from Cambodia, Haiti, Kenya, Malawi, and Tanzania. Analyses were conducted separately for each country. The presence of an association with age and each type of violence was identified using logistic regressions separately by sex. Sex was then added to the models as an interaction term and adjusted Wald tests were used to assess differences between males and females in age effects.

Results

Risk of physical violence by both an adult caregiver and a community member decreased with age for both sexes in all countries. In contrast, risk of IPV increased with age for both sexes in all countries. Although some countries displayed a steeper increase in risk of IPV and sexual violence with age for males, females face higher overall levels of risk for these forms of violence.

Conclusion

Findings highlight how adolescents’ and young adults’ risk of violence changes with age and type of violence. The analysis underscores the importance of collecting violence data disaggregated by age and sex to best inform policies and programming.

Implications and contributions

We analyzed five Violence Against Children Surveys (VACS) and found age effects for physical, sexual, and intimate partner violence for adolescents 13–24 years old. Age effects for sexual violence are stronger among females than males. Future policies targeting adolescents should consider how age and gender influence risk of violence.

Longitudinal Risks for Domestic Violence

Much research has examined the connections between victimization experiences in the family during childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. However, research that frames these different victimization experiences across the life course as part of a broader, longitudinal risk for experiencing domestic violence on the part of the individual, particularly within a theoretically driven model, is lacking. The current study uses data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), a nationally representative sample of American adolescents, to examine how child abuse connects to victimization by dating partners during adolescence and victimization by romantic and marital partners during adulthood, and whether dating victimization mediates the relationship between child abuse and intimate partner victimization in adulthood. Results suggest that this is indeed the case, with child abuse having a direct effect on adolescent dating victimization and a direct and indirect effect on adult intimate partner victimization. Implications of the findings for theory and policy are discussed.

Dating violence victimization and borderline personality pathology: Temporal associations from late adolescence to early adulthood

Borderline personality pathology is a serious mental illness characterized by pervasive interpersonal deficits that onset during adolescence. Risk factors for borderline personality pathology include maladaptive interpersonal dynamics within attachment relationships. Given the shift toward emphasizing romantic relationships during adolescence as an important attachment relationship with implications for healthy development, the current study aimed to evaluate the longitudinal and reciprocal relations between victimization in dating relationships and borderline pathology in the transition from late adolescence to early adulthood. A large sample of high school daters (N = 818; 58% female; Mage = 16.10 years, SDage = .78) were recruited to complete annual assessments of borderline personality features and dating violence victimization across 5 years. Results of a cross-lagged panel model revealed that primarily among girls, borderline features predicted increased levels of relational, psychological, and physical violence, whereas psychological and sexual violence predicted greater borderline features. The current findings provide the first evidence of a longitudinal association between victimization and borderline pathology in adolescence and suggest, particularly among girls, that interventions for borderline features have important implications for reducing dating violence victimization among adolescents and young adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Gender identity development in the shadow of socialization: a grounded theory approach

Gender identity is one of the basic forms of identity which has a key role in the mental health during adolescence. The present study was conducted to determine the process of gender identity development among Iranian female adolescents. In this grounded theory study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 55 purposefully and theoretical selected participants including 30 female adolescents and 25 key informants who lived in urban society of Isfahan, Iran, in 2016-2018. Data were analyzed using Strauss and Corbin's mode of analysis (2008), through constant comparative method, applying levels of open, axial, and selective coding with MAXQDA software. Development of gender identity in the shadow of socialization was presented as the core category extracted from the data in this study. Female adolescents would use "sexual self-expression during puberty," "attachment to parents and peers," "tendency towards the opposite sex," and "effort for social acceptance" as the main strategies in the development of gender identity until achieving "stabilized gender identity." "Girls' communicational skills" and "parents' empowerment" were the causal conditions in this process. "Gender differences" and "sociocultural texture of the society" were the contextual conditions and the influence of "peers" and "media" was the interventional conditions in the development of gender identity in female adolescents. Improving girls' communicational skills, empowering parents for managing their interactions with their daughters, adjusting gender roles in the society, and creating appropriate content by the media could have an important role in helping female adolescents achieving stabilized gender identity.

Gender and Conflict Resolution Strategies in Spanish Teen Couples: Their Relationship With Jealousy and Emotional Dependency

Previous research has pointed to the need to address the study of violence in teen couples. However, research has not delved into the study of the variables related to the different types of violence employed by boys and girls. The purpose of this study was to test whether gender, jealousy, and dependency predict specific strategies for conflict resolution (psychological aggression and mild physical aggression). Another objective of the study was to test gender differences in the conflict resolution strategies used by Spanish teen couples and to test the association between these variables and jealousy and emotional dependency. A sample of 296 adolescent high school students between 14 and 19 years of age of both genders from the south of Spain participated in this study. Hierarchical regression models were used to estimate the relationship between psychological aggression and mild physical aggression, and jealousy, and dependency. Results showed that jealousy correlated with psychological aggression and mild physical aggression in girls but not in boys. Psychological aggression and mild physical aggression were associated with dependency in boys. Girls scored higher in psychological aggression and jealousy than did boys. Finally, the interaction between jealousy and dependency predicted psychological aggression only in girls. These results highlight the need to address the role of the interaction between dependence and jealousy in the types of violence employed in teen dating. However, it is necessary to delve into the gender differences and similarities to develop appropriate prevention programs.

Dating and relationship violence among 16-19 year olds in England and Wales: a cross-sectional study of victimization

Background

Dating and relationship violence (DRV) is under-researched in the UK, especially among Further Education (FE) students. This study examines the association between DRV victimization and socio-demographic characteristics, sexual identity and dating and relationship behaviours among 16-19 year olds FE students.

Methods

Cross-sectional self-report data were collected from 1751 students aged 16-19 at six FE settings in England and Wales. Factor analysis examined the structure of DRV victimization by gender. Multilevel logistic regression examined the odds ratios of DRV victimization according to socio-demographics, sexual identity and dating behaviours.

Results

DRV victimization clusters into two categories for females, and three for males. Among females, 46.1% experienced controlling behaviours and 31.6% threatening behaviours; 49.9% of males experienced controlling behaviours, 27.1% threatening behaviours and 5.8% online sexual violence. The odds of DRV victimization were 2-8 times greater for males and 2-4 times greater for females who had ever sent a sexually explicit image. No consistent association was found between DRV and age, spending money per week, educational attainment or meeting partners online.

Conclusions

The high prevalence, absence of gender differences and social patterning, suggests DRV victimization may be becoming normalized and is of significant public health importance for young people in England and Wales.

Peer Victimization and Sexual Risk Taking Among Adolescents

BACKGROUND

Research indicates that victimization exposures are associated with sexual risk-taking behaviors, but there is a relative lack of research on the relation between peer victimization and sexual risk taking among adolescents. This study fills this gap through examining how bullying, cyberbullying, and dating violence victimization at baseline are related to sexual risk-taking behaviors 1 year later.

METHODS

Participants were a convenience sample of 220 sexually active high school students who were drawn from a larger sample of 2205 adolescents attending 6 high schools in Illinois. Adolescents completed Wave 1 surveys in Spring 2015 and Wave 2 surveys in Spring 2016.

RESULTS

Latent difference score models indicated that bullying victimization was not related to sexual risk-taking behaviors. Baseline levels of cyberbullying and verbal teen dating violence, however, were both associated with more sex under the influence of alcohol at Wave 2. Further, findings revealed that changes over time in verbal teen dating violence victimization were associated with changes over time in sex under the influence of alcohol.

CONCLUSIONS

Given links between peer victimization exposures and sexual risk-taking behaviors, school-based prevention and intervention efforts should address these in concert with one another.

The Moderating Role of Attachment on the Association between Childhood Maltreatment and Adolescent Dating Violence

Approximately twenty percent of female and ten percent of male adolescents report violence in their dating relationships and there is a significant association between dating violence in adolescence and later perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV) in adulthood. Identification of factors associated with dating violence can inform intervention and prevention efforts. This study was designed to examine the associations of early childhood maltreatment experience and involvement in adolescent dating violence. It also aimed to identify the moderating effect of insecure attachment styles on these associations. One hundred fifty adolescent who participated in a larger longitudinal study on prenatal drug exposure participated in this study. Participants completed self-report measures of childhood maltreatment at a standard follow-up visit between the ages of 15-19 years. Approximately 18 month later, they completed questionnaires on their attachment styles and level of dating violence perpetration and victimization. Hierarchical regression modeling revealed a significant main effect for childhood abuse but not insecure attachment on perpetration and victimization of dating violence. Avoidant attachment significantly moderated the relationship between childhood abuse exposure and dating violence: For adolescents who reported an avoidant attachment style, an increase in the level of experienced childhood maltreatment predicted significantly higher increases in victimization by dating violence, compared to those did not have avoidant attachment. Results suggest adolescents with child maltreatment history and avoidant attachment styles may be at higher risk for involvement in dating violence and support intervention efforts for fostering attachment relationship to attenuate the association between early exposures to maltreatment and involvement in dating violence later.

A Pilot Study of a Teen Dating Violence Prevention Program With Karen Refugees

While teen dating violence (TDV) prevention programs generally report changes in participants' attitudes and mixed findings about changes in behavior, little is known about the impact of TDV programs on ethnic minority youth. This study examined the effectiveness of Safe Dates, an evidence-based TDV prevention program, in educating 21 resettled Karen refugee youth from Burma. Findings indicated changes in attitudes toward violence occurred from pretest to follow-up. Years living in the United States was significantly related to pretest and posttest attitudes. More research about TDV is needed among Karen youth with attention given to the role of acculturation on TDV attitudes.

Dating violence victimization and substance use: The role of a serotonin transporter gene polymorphism (5HTTLPR)

While there is developing research on how genes moderate the effect of stressful life events on substance use, the limited research has yet to focus on specific stressors. As adolescent dating violence victimization has been linked to various substance use behaviors, the current research seeks to further examine the longitudinal outcomes of adolescent dating violence victimization and the role that genes play in moderating these effects. Specifically, using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), a series of logistic and negative binomial regressions are run to analyze the direct and interactive effects of adolescent dating violence victimization and a polymorphism (5HTTLPR) in the promoter region of the serotonin transporter gene on both alcohol use problems and marijuana use. The results find that 5HTTLPR interacts with adolescent dating violence victimization to increase odds of marijuana use for the sample. However, the interaction between 5HTTLPR and adolescent dating violence has differential effects for males and females, suggesting sex differences regarding the susceptibility properties of 5HTTLPR. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Prevalence and characteristics of three subtypes of dating violence among Danish seventh-grade students

Background

A high prevalence of adolescent dating violence (ADV) has been documented in recent years. However, the majority of ADV studies have been conducted in North America and moreover, ADV studies have primarily focused on high school or college populations.

Objective

To investigate victimization and perpetration of ADV and related gender differences in a sample of Danish seventh-grade students.

Method

In total, 2934 seventh-grade students (M = 3.5, SD = 0.5) filled out questionnaires at school.

Results

The prevalence of victimization of emotional, physical and sexual ADV was 32.2%, 11.2% and 10.6%, and the prevalence of perpetration of emotional, physical and sexual ADV was 20.6%, 6% and 2.1%. One out of five students reported both victimization and perpetration of one of the three ADV types and 14.3% and 6% reported multiple forms of ADV victimization and perpetration respectively. Moreover, gender differences in the prevalence of ADV and the co-occurrence of ADV victimization and perpetration were identified.

Conclusion

The present study highlights that a large proportion of Danish seventh-grade students are experiencing ADV, and that ADV preventive programs are relevant already in early adolescence. Based on the high proportion of students reporting co-occurrence of victimization and perpetration experiences, comprehensive preventive programs that focus on both victimization and perpetration experiences and the transmission of violence are recommended.

Intimate Partner Violence Victimization in the Cyber and Real World: Examining the Extent of Cyber Aggression Experiences and Its Association With In-Person Dating Violence

This study explores the extent of cyber aggression victimization in intimate relationships and its co-occurrence with in-person experiences of psychological, physical, and sexual partner violence. Data were collected from 540 college students who reported being in a dating relationship in the past 12 months. Participants were asked to complete an online questionnaire that included measures assessing intimate partner victimization experiences in differing social contexts (through socially interactive technology and in face-to-face encounters). Findings indicated that intimate partner cyber aggression victimization is not uncommon, as nearly three quarters of respondents reported having experienced some form of it in the past year. Multivariate analyses also indicate that such aggression may be part of a larger violence nexus given its relation to in-person psychological, physical, and sexual partner violence victimization experiences. In light of these findings, it is recommended that longitudinal research encompassing multiple violence victimization experiences in varying social contexts is completed to determine whether online experiences foreshadow offline ones and, if so, consider interaction effects on outcomes as well as potential intervention strategies to reduce harm associated with such negative experiences.

Childhood Corporal Punishment and Future Perpetration of Physical Dating Violence

OBJECTIVE

To test whether experiencing childhood corporal punishment is linked to later perpetration of dating violence.

STUDY DESIGN

Young adults (n = 758; 61% female; mean age of 20 years), originally recruited for a longitudinal study as 9th- and 10th-grade Texas high school students, were asked about their childhood experiences with corporal punishment and physical abuse, as well as current experiences with dating violence. A path model was used to determine whether childhood corporal punishment was related to recent perpetration of physical dating violence, while controlling for childhood physical abuse, age, sex, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.

RESULTS

In all, 19% of participants (n = 134) reported physical dating violence perpetration and 68% reported experiencing corporal punishment as children (n = 498). Analysis showed a significant positive association between corporal punishment and physical perpetration of dating violence (OR 1.30, 95% CI 1.07-1.59). Even after controlling for sex, ethnicity, age, parental education, and child physical abuse, childhood corporal punishment was associated significantly with physical dating violence perpetration (aOR 1.29, 95% CI 1.02-1.62).

CONCLUSIONS

The finding that childhood corporal punishment was associated with perpetration of young adult physical dating violence, even after controlling for several demographic variables and childhood physical abuse, adds to the growing literature demonstrating deleterious outcomes associated with corporal punishment.

The Romantic Relationships of Adolescents With ADHD

OBJECTIVE

This study compared the romantic relationships of adolescents with and without ADHD with regard to romantic involvement, relationship content, and relationship quality.

METHOD

A community sample of 58 participants (30 ADHD, 28 Comparison), ages 13 to 18, completed questionnaires assessing various features of romantic relationships.

RESULTS

Adolescents with ADHD reported having more romantic partners than their typically developing (TD) peers. Females with ADHD were found to have shorter romantic relationships than TD adolescents while males with ADHD reported their age of first intercourse to be nearly 2 years sooner than TD peers. Irrespective of gender, adolescents with ADHD had nearly double the number of lifetime sexual partners. However, the romantic relationships of adolescents with and without ADHD did not differ on levels of aggression or relationship quality.

CONCLUSION

Given the outcomes associated with poor-quality romantic relationships, comprehensive assessments of adolescents with ADHD should include queries into their romantic relationships.

Prevalence of teen dating victimization among a representative sample of high school students in Quebec

Background/Objective

The present study aimed to (1) examine prevalence rates and frequency of dating violence victimization among a representative sample of Quebec high school adolescents and (2) explore possible gender differences in these rates as well as in perceived impact of victimization.

Method

A sample of 8,194 students completed questionnaires evaluating dating victimization in the past 12 months as well as perceived impacts.

Results

Results show that psychological violence is the most frequent form of dating victimization reported. Girls are more likely to report experiences of psychological, physical, threatening behaviors as well as sexual dating victimization than boys. Analyses on different indicators of the impact of victimization (i.e. feelings of fear, distress and post-traumatic stress symptoms) reveal that teenage girls are more vulnerable to sustaining more pervasive impacts than boys.

Conclusions

The findings underscore dating violence as a prevalent public health problem. A significant number of teens report dating victimization with girls more likely than boys to perceive negative impacts associated with the coercive behaviors experienced.

A Cross-National Comparison of Risk Factors for Teen Dating Violence in Mexico and the United States

Involvement in dating violence has been linked with negative health outcomes including depressive symptomology, substance use, and later expressions of aggressing and victimizing behaviors. Less is known about the prevalence and mental health correlates of teen dating violence in countries like Mexico where adult partner violence is high. Additional research on teen dating violence is also needed, as it may be an important precursor to adult partner violence and linked to other mental health problems. The current study used self-report ratings to assess the similarities and differences in risk factors associated with dating violence among middle school students in Mexico and the United States. The US sample (N_us = 15,099; M_us = 12.8; 49.5% female) included non-Hispanic Caucasian (24.9%), Hispanic American (20.3%), and African American (24.2%) adolescents. The Mexican sample (N_Mexico = 2211; M_Mexico = 13.67; 51% female) included 93.1% adolescents of Hispanic or Latin descent. Logistic regressions showed that dating violence victimization was reported at similar rates in the cross-national samples, though exposure to risk factors like deviant peers and substance use differed significantly by country. Our analyses indicated that, although the country of residence was not significantly associated with dating violence victimization, the strength of the association between some known risk factors and dating violence victimization varied as a function of nationality, such that there was a significant interaction between country of residence, Mexico or the US, and experiencing internalizing symptoms on experiencing physical dating violence victimization. This study contributes to the growing body of literature on dating violence, both inside and outside the US.