Teen Dating Violence Research Articles

Relationships Among Romantic Myths, Tolerant Attitudes Toward Abuse, and Teen Dating Violence Victimization: The Moderator Role of Gender

The aim of this study was to analyze the direct and indirect relationships between romantic myths of love and teen dating violence victimization (physical and psychological), considering the mediating role of tolerant attitudes toward abuse and the moderator role of gender. A sample of 467 adolescents who had a dating relationship at that time or in the previous 12 months (45.6% boys, Mage = 15.09, SDage = 1.46) participated. Results showed that tolerant attitudes toward abuse was a significant mediating variable in the relationship between romantic myths and psychological dating violence victimization only in adolescent girls. Psychological dating violence victimization was also a mediating variable in the relationship between tolerant attitudes and physical dating violence victimization in adolescent girls. These findings highlight the relevance of tolerant attitudes toward abuse in understanding teen dating violence victimization, especially in adolescent girls, and the need to include these attitudes in prevention programs.

Adolescent Experience With Dating Violence in Relation to Virginity Status: Findings From a Jamaican Sample

The association between adolescents' involvement in sexual intercourse and their experiences with adolescent dating violence (ADV) is an understudied topic. This study examined this relationship for 178 Jamaican adolescents in Grades 9-11. The expectation that adolescents who reported having had sexual intercourse would report greater victimization and greater perpetration than adolescents who had not had intercourse was consistent only for sexual abuse. Analyses also showed that sexually experienced males perpetrated and experienced more psychological abuse compared to males who were not so experienced. These results suggest different experiences based on adolescents' sex and so support others' calls for ADV research to do more examinations by sex. Also, it endorses the importance of doing research on both victims and perpetrators of intimate abuse. Implications of these findings for sexual and relationship education of adolescents are discussed.

Childhood maltreatment: The role of concurrent advantageous experiences on adolescents' psychosocial adjustment.

Despite the growing body of evidence concerning the harmful effects of childhood maltreatment, intimate partner violence exposure (IPVE) and their correlates, little is currently known about the effects of co-occurring advantageous family conditions (e.g., instrumental support, inductive parenting, positive communication) and how they may serve to offset the detrimental effects of maltreatment and IPVE. The present study applied a three-step latent class analysis to identify the co-occurrence patterns of childhood maltreatment and advantageous family conditions among 1379 Spanish adolescents. The study also sought to identify the sociodemographic risk markers and psychosocial adjustment associated with each latent class membership. The analyses revealed four classes, namely (1) violent family context, (2) emotionally neglectful family context, (3) adverse and advantageous family conditions, and (4) positive family context. Having a lower socioeconomic status and being a migrant were both risk markers for membership to the violent family context as well as to the adverse and advantageous family conditions class. Adolescents who were exposed to advantageous family conditions (e.g., the positive family context or the adverse and advantageous family conditions) exhibited fewer psychosocial problems (e.g., depression, anxiety, somatisation) and lower frequencies of teen dating violence (TDV) when compared with those in the violent family context. Moreover, membership to the emotionally neglectful family context class was related to more psychological symptoms and a higher prevalence of TDV when compared with membership to the positive family context class, despite the absence of IPVE and maltreatment. Overall, the results provide evidence that advantageous family conditions contribute to better psychosocial adjustment on the part of adolescents even when exposed to IPV and maltreatment. Identifying the experiences that contribute to adolescents' psychosocial adjustment could help clinical and governmental interventions tailor their often-limited resources to children who are at greater risk of negative outcomes.

Profiles and Risk Factors for Teen Dating Violence in Spain.

Teen dating violence (TDV) refers to a wide range of partner-directed harmful behaviors among adolescents. Since it was first documented in the 1980s, there is a growing interest in TDV due to its potentially devastating mid- and long-term consequences. Aiming at the early detection of TDV onset with prevention purposes, research has focused on the detection of typologies of perpetrators and/or victims as well as on identifying risk and protective factors for its occurrence. Research with Spanish adolescents, however, is very limited. To fill this gap, we recruited a total of 2,319 adolescents from different regions in Spain, out of which, 1,079 reported having had a romantic partner during the last year. These filled out measures of TDV (perpetration and victimization), school aggression, hostile and benevolent sexism, empathy, assertiveness, psychological inflexibility (general measures), and psychological inflexibility with prejudice thoughts. A cluster analysis revealed that adolescents could be divided into two clusters as a function of their TDV profile: Cluster 1, including close to 76% of the sample (boys and girls), presented low TDV perpetration and victimization; Cluster 2, including 24% of the sample (boys and girls), presented higher TDV perpetration and victimization. Regression analyses revealed that, as compared to those in Cluster 1, adolescents in Cluster 2 were more likely to be older boys who scored high in benevolent sexism, overt and relational school aggression, and personal distress, and low in behavior regulation skills, perspective taking, and practical personal ability. We discuss the implications of these findings for the design of evidence-based TDV prevention campaigns.

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.

Web-Based Delivery of a Family-Based Dating Violence Prevention Program for Youth Who Have Been Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence: Protocol for an Acceptability and Feasibility Study.

BackgroundChildren exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) between caregivers are at an increased risk of becoming involved in dating violence during adolescence. However, to date, few adolescent dating violence (ADV) prevention programs have been developed for and evaluated with youth exposed to IPV. An exception is Moms and Teens for Safe Dates (MTSD), an evidence-based ADV prevention program for mothers or maternal caregivers (mothers) exposed to IPV and their teenagers. The MTSD program comprises a series of booklets that families complete together in a home that includes activities to promote positive family communication and healthy teenager relationships. We developed a web-adapted version of the MTSD program—entitled eMoms and Teens for Safe Dates (eMTSD)—to provide a delivery format that may increase program appeal for digitally oriented teenagers, lower dissemination costs, lower reading burden for low-literacy participants, and incorporate built-in cues and reminders to boost program adherence.ObjectiveThis protocol is for a research study that has the following three main objectives: to assess the acceptability of eMTSD; to identify the feasibility of the research process, including program adherence and participant recruitment and assessment; and to explore the acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of 2 features—text reminders and the creation of an action plan for engaging with the program—that may increase program uptake and completion.MethodsApproximately 100 mothers and their teenagers will be invited to complete eMTSD, which includes six 30-minute web-based modules over a 6-week period. Mothers will be recruited through community organizations and social media advertising and will be eligible to participate if they have at least 1 teenager aged 12 to 16 years living with them, have experienced IPV after the teenager was born, are not currently living with an abusive partner, and have access to an internet-enabled device. Using a factorial design, enrolled dyads will be randomized to the following four adherence support groups (n=25 dyads per group): text reminders and action planning, text reminders only, action planning only, and no adherence supports. All participants will complete brief web-based assessments at enrollment after each module is completed, after the full program is completed, and 90 days after enrollment. Program adherence will be tracked using website use metrics.ResultsThe data collected will be synthesized to assess the acceptability of the program and the feasibility of the study procedures. An exploratory analysis will examine the impact of adherence support on program completion levels. In November 2021, ethical approval was received and recruitment was initiated. Data collection is expected to continue until December 2022.ConclusionsThe web-based delivery of a family-based healthy relationship program for teenagers exposed to IPV may offer a convenient, low-cost, and engaging approach to preventing ADV. The findings from this study are expected to guide future research.International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/35487

A 10 year (2011-2021) systematic review of teen dating violence prevention programs.

Teen dating violence (TDV) refers to the physical, sexual and/or psychological violence that takes place within a romantic relationship amongst teenagers. TDV has devastating consequences for the victims, particularly for young women, who also experience increased risk of relationship violence in their adulthood. In view of this, the implementation of effective TDV prevention programs has the potential to tackle both TDV and contribute to eradicate gender-based violence. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review examining the effectiveness of the TDV programs published during the last decade (2011-2021). From the 1143 studies identified through the database searches, 28 met the inclusion criteria: 10-18 years old; experimental, or quasi-experimental with control group; examining knowledge, attitudes and/or TDV behavior indicators; 2011-2021. Although there were still many programs focused on changing knowledge and attitudes only, we found an increase in the number of studies examining TDV behavioral indicators. A modest improvement in the quality of the programs in terms of their ability to modify the desired TDV behaviors was detected, yet resistance to change was still observed. Effective programs met many of the requirements specified by the gender transformative programme literature (time-intensive, multilevel, multicomponent skill development approaches). Nonetheless, we identified some brief, creative and effective interventions worth implementing given their cost-efficacy.

State Teen Dating Violence School Legislation in The United States: A Content Analysis

Teen dating violence (TDV) is a pervasive issue that can have a variety of negative effects on those who have been victimized. Prior research shows that state-level laws have an impact on the extent of TDV; however, scant research has analyzed the variations in the language used in the legislation. The present study analyzes the existing state legislation for addressing TDV in schools and compares the content of the legislation. This study provides a detailed analysis of each of the states’ legislation. It examines differences in how states conceptualize TDV and provides details demonstrating the variations of state legislation. We utilized qualitative descriptive content analysis and purposive sampling with maximum variation. A total of 27 states have legislation to address TDV in schools. Findings demonstrate that states have great variation in legislation addressing TDV in schools. Some states appear to take a minimalistic approach in specifying legislation on how schools should address TDV, other states provide their schools with general guidelines to address TDV, and a few states provide very specific guidelines for schools to follow. This study is an important step to understanding what components of state TDV legislation in schools are most universal and might impact the prevalence of TDV. Future research is needed to identify the components of state TDV legislation that are related to impacting TDV prevalence.

Assessment of Variation in US State Laws Addressing the Prevention of and Response to Teen Dating Violence in Secondary Schools

Teen dating violence (TDV) is widespread and has adverse consequences across the life course. Many US states are actively seeking strategies to prevent and address TDV in schools, including enactment and implementation of TDV laws. These state laws are upstream, system-level interventions that lay the foundation for an array of downstream targeted interventions to be deployed in schools. Despite these laws gaining momentum in the past decade, there has been minimal research examining their content and variability. To assess the content and comprehensiveness of US state laws addressing prevention of and response to TDV in secondary schools. A team of public health and legal researchers used systematic policy surveillance methods to develop a comprehensive database of state laws addressing TDV in schools in all 50 US states and the District of Columbia (referred to hereinafter as "states") in effect as of September 30, 2020. Using LexisNexis and state legislature websites, state laws (statutes and administrative codes) were identified. Components for each law were coded within 5 categories: scope, prevention education, policy, response, and implementation. Overall, 38 states (74.5%) had at least 1 law addressing TDV in secondary schools and 13 states (25.5%) did not. Fewer than half of states with a law (15 of 38 [39.5%]) defined TDV. All 38 states addressed prevention education, with 29 (76.3%) requiring and 9 (23.7%) encouraging these efforts. Prevention education was largely for students in most states (35 [92.1%]), but some states also required school staff (18 [47.4%]) and parents (8 [21.1%]) to receive prevention education. Fewer than half of states required (14 [36.8%]) or encouraged (3 [7.9%]) school districts to develop a policy addressing TDV. Very few states included requirements for how schools must respond to TDV incidents. Fewer than a third of states designated an individual to coordinate TDV efforts (12 [31.6%]), included a funding provision in their laws for TDV programs and policies (10 [26.3%]), and included explicit consequences for noncompliance with TDV laws (12 [31.6%]). This cross-sectional study found that most US states had laws addressing TDV in schools, but there was significant variation in the content and comprehensiveness of the laws. These findings can inform the development of more comprehensive laws on TDV that may ultimately reduce such incidents.

Technology “Feels Less Threatening”: The processes by which digital technologies facilitate youths’ access to services at intimate partner violence organizations

Youth survivors of teen dating violence (TDV) are hesitant to reach out for services from social service providers for fear of judgement and not being believed. Given the central role that technology plays in youths’ lives, it has been suggested that digital innovations can help overcome some of these barriers. The present study explores the perceptions of service providers at Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) regarding ways in which technology can increase service access and utilization for youth. Using qualitative methodology, the interview sample includes thirty-five IPV service professionals in the United States. Analysis involved thematic content analysis methods that included multiple rounds of open and focused coding and the utilization of data matrices to facilitate within- and across-case analyses.The analysis yielded four primary thematic domains related to how technology facilitates youths’ access to services: 1) youths’ preference for and comfort with using digital modes of communication, 2) perceptions that digital forms of communication are less threatening and could thus function as an entry point for receiving services, 3) the potential for digital communication to help overcome the physical barriers to service access, and 4) youths’ belief that digital modes of communication were more confidential.This study constructs knowledge regarding how technology might nurture youths’ engagement with services at IPV organizations by functioning as a metaphorical bridge to service providers. Providers viewed digital communication as a tool to augment existing services rather than replace current in-person prevention or advocacy. While these findings provide evidence for the important role technology can play at GBV organizations, both providers and service users need to be cognizant of the limitations and biases associated with emerging technologies.

Canadian Adolescents' Experiences of Dating Violence: Associations with Social Power Imbalances.

A substantial minority of adolescents experience and use dating violence in their sexual and/or romantic relationships. Limited attention has been paid to exploring theory-driven questions about use and experience of adolescent dating violence (ADV), restricting knowledge about promising prevention targets for diverse groups of youth. To address this gap, this paper investigates whether factors tied to power imbalances (bullying, risk of social marginalization) are associated with patterns of ADV victimization and perpetration in a large sample of Canadian mid-adolescents. We used data from the 2017/2018 Health-Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) study, a nationally representative sample of Canadian youth. Our study was comprised of adolescents who were in grades 9 or 10, and who had dated in the past 12 months (N = 3779). We assessed multiple forms of ADV and bullying victimization and perpetration. We also included six variables assessing adolescents' risk of social marginalization: gender, race/ethnicity, immigration status, family structure, food insecurity, and family affluence. We used latent class analysis to explore the ways adolescents experience and use different forms of ADV, and then examined whether factors tied to power imbalances (bullying, social marginalization) were associated with classes of ADV. Three ADV classes emerged in our sample: uninvolved (65.7%), psychological and cyber victimization only (28.9%), and mutual violence (5.4%). Bullying was most strongly associated with the mutual violence class, suggesting a transformation of power from peer to romantic contexts. Social marginalization variables were associated with ADV patterns in different ways, highlighting the need to use a critical and anti-oppressive lens in ADV research and prevention initiatives.

Teen Dating Violence Victimization: Associations Among Peer Justification, Attitudes Toward Gender Inequality, Sexual Activity, and Peer Victimization

Teen Dating Violence Victimization: Associations Among Peer Justification, Attitudes Toward Gender Inequality, Sexual Activity, and Peer Victimization

Applying Digital Technologies to Tackle Teen Dating Violence: a Systematic Review

Applying Digital Technologies to Tackle Teen Dating Violence: a Systematic Review

The Association Between Dating Violence and Student Absenteeism Among a Representative Sample of U.S. High School Students: Findings From the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey Survey.

Student absenteeism affects students' engagement in school and academic and professional success. While research documents a significant association between school bullying/fighting and student absenteeism due to fear of being at school or getting to school, little research has examined the association of adolescent dating violence (ADV) victimization with this type of absenteeism. This study examined the relationship between physical and/or sexual ADV victimization in the past year (dichotomized as yes or no), and number of days of student absenteeism due to feeling unsafe at school or on the way to school in the past month (dichotomized as any vs. none). We analyzed cross-sectional data from the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), a nationally representative survey of U.S. high school students (n = 9507). We conducted crude and multivariate regression models for the total sample and stratified by sex to assess our hypothesized association of ADV victimization and absenteeism; sex, grade, race/ethnicity, and sexual identity were included as covariates in adjusted models. Findings demonstrate that students reporting past year ADV victimization had 3.69 times the odds of student absenteeism due to feeling unsafe, when compared to students who did not report ADV victimization (95% CI: 3.06-4.45, p < 0.001). Sex-stratified models reveal that this effect is significantly stronger for males than for females, as indicated by non-overlapping confidence intervals (male AOR: 5.67, 95% CI: 4.18-7.68; female AOR: 2.95, 95% CI: 2.32-3.74). The multivariate models also show that Black and Latinx compared with White students, and lesbian/gay/bisexual/unsure compared with heterosexual students, had higher odds of student absenteeism due to feeling unsafe. Findings indicate the need to address ADV victimization and student absenteeism with integrated and gender-tailored responses, and with consideration of greater vulnerabilities for queer students and students of color.

Teen Dating Violence Victimization: Associations Among Peer Justification, Attitudes Toward Gender Inequality, Sexual Activity, and Peer Victimization

Teen Dating Violence Victimization: Associations Among Peer Justification, Attitudes Toward Gender Inequality, Sexual Activity, and Peer Victimization

Teen Dating Violence Victimization: Associations Among Peer Justification, Attitudes Toward Gender Inequality, Sexual Activity, and Peer Victimization.

The current study, grounded in a social learning theoretical framework, examined attitudes and behaviors associated with verbal and physical teen dating violence (TDV) victimization. Because TDV varies by gender in both frequency and severity, these associations were examined first within the overall sample, and then by gender to further investigate these differences. A total of 1,884 adolescents (49.2% boys; 50.8% girls; average age 14.79 years; SD = .58) who reported ever dating someone were included in the analysis. Specifically, peers’ justification of TDV, attitudes supporting gender inequality, sexual activity, and peer victimization were included to determine their cross-sectional association with verbal and physical TDV victimization. Data were analyzed separately for boys and girls. Results indicated that peers’ justification of TDV, peer victimization, sexual activity, and attitudes supporting gender inequality were each associated with higher physical and verbal TDV victimization for girls and boys. Most of these factors remained significant when separated by gender, except for sexual activity and attitudes supporting gender inequality, which were not associated with physical TDV victimization for boys and girls, respectively. Implications for practice and research are discussed.

Childhood Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence and Teen Dating Violence

Childhood Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence and Teen Dating Violence

Perceived Parental Support in Teen Dating Violence.

This qualitative study explores heterosexual teen girls' perceptions of parental support in abusive dating relationships during high school. Teen girls are at high risk for dating violence. Symbolic interaction theory asserts that meaning is assigned through our interactions, and these assigned meanings then influence our behavior. Findings demonstrate that teen girls assign meaning to dating and abuse, which is often reflective of traditional gender stereotypes, through their interactions with their boyfriends. However, due to the life course, parents of teens are in a unique position to provide different meanings that foster healthier dating relationships. Analysis of semistructured retrospective interviews found that, like adults, teen victims perceived parents' support to be inconsistent. Parents who provided support, such as ensuring safety, giving advice, and involving other professionals, played an instrumental role in helping teen girls end abusive dating relationships. Social workers should engage parents, schools, and peers in prevention education efforts that challenge gender norms and provide training on how to effectively intervene and provide support to teens that are experiencing abuse in their dating relationships.

Adolescent peer aggression judgments and expected bystander intervention in teen dating violence

Instances of teen dating violence (TDV), like other forms of aggression, can involve both physical and social harm. This study (1) compares adolescent acceptability judgments and bystander expectations about a hypothetical TDV story to platonic physical aggression (PPA) and platonic social aggression (PSA) stories and (2) explores how individual, peer, and school climate factors relate to TDV bystander expectations. Adolescent participants (N = 828, 50.8% female) were less accepting of and more likely to expect to intervene in PPA compared to TDV and PSA. Females were less accepting and more likely to expect to intervene across all stories compared to males. In the TDV story, less TDV acceptance and higher rates of empathy and positive student-teacher relationships were associated with greater intervention expectations, whereas those nominated as “popular” and “least liked” were less likely to expect to intervene. Implications for programing aimed at reducing TDV through bystander intervention are discussed.

Dating Violence in Adolescence: Comparison between Scholars and Adolescents in Residential Care

(1) Background: Dating violence (DV) among adolescents constitutes a serious problem, not only because of the magnitude of the phenomenon, but also because of the seriousness of the personal and social consequences derived from it. The objectives of this study were the following: to analyze the prevalence of DV among adolescents in residential care and in schools, according to sex, age and origin, and to analyze the prevalence of the types of violence and victimization, according to the residential care resource and the school. (2) Methods: The sample consisted of adolescents in residential care in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country (Spain) (n = 271) and adolescents in schools (n = 268) aged between 12 and 17 years. (3) Results: The results showed a higher prevalence of DV in adolescents in residential care than that found in other studies with a normative sample. (4) Conclusions: These results support the need for work and research with these minors in residential care. It also gives an important weight to sociodemographic variables, such as age and sex, and also to the types of violence and victimization, i.e., variables to be taken into account in the intervention with adolescents. Future educational programs should consider DV prevention and children in residential care.