Overview of Teen Dating Violence

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Teen Dating Violence
Unhealthy relationships can start early and last a lifetime. Dating violence often starts with teasing and name calling. These behaviors are often thought to be a “normal” part of a relationship. But these behaviors can lead to more serious violence like physical assault and rape.
What is dating violence?
Teen dating violence [PDF 292KB] is defined as the physical, sexual, or psychological/emotional violence within a dating relationship. You may have heard several different words used to describe teen dating violence. Here are just a few: * Relationship Abuse * Intimate Partner Violence * Relationship Violence * Dating Abuse * Domestic Abuse * Domestic Violence
Adolescents and adults are often unaware how regularly dating violence occurs. In a nationwide survey, 9.8 percent of high school students report being hit, slapped, or physically hurt on purpose by their boyfriend or girlfriend in the 12 months prior to the survey. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009 Youth Risk Behavior Survey.)
What are the consequences of dating violence?
As teens develop emotionally, they are heavily influenced by their relationship experiences. Healthy relationship behaviors can have a positive effect on a teen’s emotional development. Unhealthy, abusive or violent relationships can cause short term and long term negative effects, or consequences to the developing teen. Victims of teen dating violence are more likely to do poorly in school, and report binge drinking, suicide attempts, and physical fighting. Victims may also carry the patterns of violence into future relationships.
Why Does Dating Violence Happen?
Treat others with respect. This idea may seem like common sense but the truth is, quite a few teens are involved in violent relationships. And many think it 's justified. After all, society seems to be okay with it, just look at all the TV shows and listen to popular songs these days. Violence is never acceptable. But there are reasons why it happens.
Violence is related to certain risk factors. Risks of having unhealthy relationships increase for teens who: * Believe it 's okay to use threats or violence to get their way or to express frustration or anger. * Use alcohol or drugs. * Can 't manage anger or frustration. * Hang out with violent peers. * Have a friend involved in dating violence. * Have low self-esteem or are depressed. * Have learning difficulties and other problems at school. * Don 't have parental supervision and support. * Witness violence at home or in the community. * Have a history of aggressive behavior or bullying.
Dating violence can be prevented when teens, families, organizations, and communities work together to implement effective prevention strategies.
The following resources provide more information on teen dating violence.
Publications
* Understanding Teen Dating Violence Fact Sheet [PDF 292KB] * Physical Dating Violence Among High School Students—United States, 2003

Understanding
Teen Dating Violence
Fact Sheet 2010

Dating violence is a type of intimate partner violence. It occurs between two people in a close relationship. The nature of dating violence can be physical, emotional, or sexual.
• Physical—This occurs when a partner is pinched, hit, shoved, or kicked.
• Emotional—This means threatening a partner or harming his or her sense of self-worth. Examples include name calling, shaming, bullying, embarrassing on purpose, or keeping him/her away from friends and family.
• Sexual—This is forcing a partner to engage in a sex act when he or she does not or cannot consent.
Unhealthy relationships can start early and last a lifetime. Dating violence often starts with teasing and name calling. These behaviors are often thought to be a “normal” part of a relationship. But these behaviors can lead to more serious violence like physical assault and rape.
How does dating violence affect health?
Dating violence can have a negative effect on health throughout life. Teens who are victims are more likely to be depressed and do poorly in school.3 They may engage in unhealthy behaviors, like using drugs and alcohol3, and are more likely to have eating disorders.4 Some teens even think about or attempt suicide.5 Teens who are victims in high school are at higher risk for victimization during college.6
Who is at risk for dating violence?
Studies show that people who harm their dating partners are more depressed and are more aggressive than peers. Other factors that increase risk for harming a dating partner include:7
• Trauma symptoms
• Alcohol use
• Having a friend involved in dating violence
• Having problem behaviors in other areas
• Belief that dating violence is acceptable
• Exposure to harsh parenting
• Exposure to inconsistent discipline
• Lack of parental supervision, monitoring, and warmth
Why is dating violence a public health problem?
Dating violence is a serious problem in the United States. Many teens do not report it because they are afraid to tell friends and family.
• 72% of 8th and 9th graders reportedly “date”.1
• 1 in 4 adolescents report verbal, physical, emotional, or sexual abuse from a dating partner each year .1
• About 10% of students nationwide report being physically hurt by a boyfriend or girlfriend in the past 12 months.2 www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention Understanding Teen Dating Violence

How can we prevent dating violence?
The ultimate goal is to stop dating violence before it starts. Strategies that promote healthy relationships are vital. During the preteen and teen years, young people are learning skills they need to form positive relationships with others. This is an ideal time to promote healthy relationships and prevent patterns of dating violence that can last into adulthood.
Prevention programs change the attitudes and behaviors linked with dating violence. One example is Safe Dates, a school-based program that is designed to change social norms and improve problem solving skills.
Where can I learn more?
Choose Respect Initiative www.cdc.gov/chooserespect National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
National Sexual Assault Hotline
1-800-656-HOPE (4673)
National Sexual Violence Resource Center www.nsvrc.org Dating Matters: Understanding Teen Dating
Violence Prevention www.vetoviolence.org/datingmatters How does CDC approach prevention? CDC uses a 4-step approach to address public health problems like dating violence.
Step 1: Define the problem
Before we can prevent dating violence, we need to know how big the problem is, where it is, and whom it affects. CDC learns about a problem by gathering and studying data. These data are critical because they help decision makers send resources where they are needed most.
Step 2: Identify risk and protective factors
It is not enough to know that dating violence is affecting a certain group of people in a certain area. We also need to know why. CDC conducts and supports research to answer this question. We can then develop programs to reduce or get rid of risk factors.
Step 3: Develop and test prevention strategies
Using information gathered in research, CDC develops and evaluates strategies to prevent violence.
Step 4: Assure widespread adoption
In this final step, CDC shares the best prevention strategies. CDC may also provide funding or technical help so communities can adopt these strategies.
For a list of CDC activities, see www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pub/ipv_sv_guide.html.
References
1. Foshee VA, Linder GF, Bauman KE, et al. The Safe Dates project: theoretical basis, evaluation design, and selected baseline findings. American Journal of Preventive Medicine 1996;12(Suppl 2):39–47.
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Youth Risk Behavioral Surveillance—United States, 2009. MMWR 2010;59(No.SS-5).
3. Banyard VL & Cross C. Consequences of teen dating violence: Understanding intervening variables in ecological context. Violence Against Women. 2008:14(9):998-1013.
4. Ackard DM & Neumark-Sztainer D, Date violence and date rape among adolescents: Associations with disordered eating behaviors and psychological health. Child Abuse and Neglect. 2002:26:455-473.
5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Physical Dating Violence Among High School Students—United States, 2003. MMWR 2006:55:532-535.
6. Smith PH, White JW, Holland LJ. A longitudinal perspective on dating violence among adolescent and college-age women. American Journal of Public Health. 2003;93(7):1104–9.
7. Foshee VA, & Matthew RA. (2007). Adolescent dating abuse perpetration: A review of findings, methodological limitations, and suggestions for future research. In DJ Flannery, AT Vazjoni, & ID Waldman (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Violence Behavior and Aggression (pp. 431-449). New York: Cambridge.

For more information, please contact:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
1-800-CDC-INFO • www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention • cdcinfo@cdc.gov

Physical Dating Violence Among High School Students --- United States, 2003Dating violence is defined as physical, sexual, or psychological violence within a dating relationship. In a study of dating violence victimization among students in grades 7--12 during 1994--1995, the 18-month prevalence of victimization from physical and psychological dating violence was estimated at 12% and 20%, respectively (1). In addition to the risk for injury and death, victims of dating violence are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior, unhealthy dieting behaviors, substance use, and suicidal ideation/attempts (2--4). Dating violence victimization can be a precursor for intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization in adulthood, most notably among women (5). Among adult women in the United States, an estimated 5.3 million IPV incidents occur each year, resulting in approximately 2 million injuries and 1,300 deaths (6). By using data from the 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), CDC analyzed the prevalence of physical dating violence (PDV) victimization among high school students and its association with five risk behaviors. The results indicated that 8.9% of students (8.9% of males and 8.8% of females) reported PDV victimization during the 12 months preceding the survey and that students reporting PDV victimization were more likely to engage in four of the five risk behaviors (i.e., sexual intercourse, attempted suicide, episodic heavy drinking, and physical fighting). Primary prevention programs are needed to educate high school students about healthy dating relationship behaviors, and secondary prevention programs should address risk behaviors associated with dating violence victimization. YRBS, a component of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, measures the prevalence of health risk behaviors among high school students through biennial national, state, and local surveys. The 2003 national survey obtained cross-sectional data representative of public- and private-school students in grades 9--12 in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The overall response rate was 67%. Data from 15,214 students in 158 schools were available for analysis; 14,956 (98.3%) students answered the dating violence question. Students completed an anonymous, self-administered questionnaire that included a question about dating violence victimization. A more detailed description of these methods appears elsewhere (7). PDV victimization was defined as a response of "yes" to a single question: "During the past 12 months, did your boyfriend or girlfriend ever hit, slap, or physically hurt you on purpose?" Students were not asked whether they had had a boyfriend or girlfriend during the 12 months preceding the survey; therefore, a response of "no" might have included students who had not been dating. The following self-reported risk behaviors also were assessed: currently sexually active (had sexual intercourse with at least one person during the 3 months preceding the survey), attempted suicide (actually attempted suicide at least one time during the 12 months preceding the survey), current cigarette use (smoked cigarettes on >1 of the 30 days preceding the survey), episodic heavy drinking (had five or more alcoholic drinks in a row on >1 of the 30 days preceding the survey), and physical fighting (was in a physical fight at least one time during the 12 months preceding the survey). Specific risk behaviors were selected to represent risks that are of public health concern among high school students. Data were weighted to produce national estimates. All calculations were performed using statistical software to account for the complex sampling design. Differences in prevalence among persons with certain characteristics were determined statistically significant if the 95% confidence intervals did not overlap. Adjusted odds ratios were calculated to examine the association between PDV victimization and the five risk behaviors using a multivariable logistic regression model that included, as predictors, the five risk behaviors and sex, grade level, race/ethnicity, and self-reported grades. In this report, data are presented for black, white, and Hispanic students*; the numbers of students from other racial/ethnic populations were too small for meaningful analysis. Among all 14,956 students, 8.9% reported experiencing PDV victimization. The prevalence of PDV victimization was similar for males (8.9%) and females (8.8%) and similar by grade level (range: 8.1%--10.1%) (Table 1). Prevalence of reported PDV victimization was greater among blacks (13.9%) than whites (7.0%) and Hispanics (9.3%). In addition, prevalence of PDV victimization was greater among black males (13.7%) than white males (6.6%) and higher among black females (14.0%) than white females (7.5%) and Hispanic females (9.2%). PDV victimization prevalence did not vary significantly by geographic region. Lower self-reported grades in school were associated with higher levels of PDV victimization; 6.1% of students reporting mostly A 's reported PDV victimization compared with 13.7% of students receiving mostly D 's or F 's. Prevalences of the five risk behaviors among all participants were as follows: currently sexually active, 34.3%; attempted suicide, 8.5%; current cigarette use, 21.9%; episodic heavy drinking, 28.3%; and physical fighting, 33.0%. After controlling for sex, grade level, race/ethnicity, self-reported grades, and the five risk behaviors examined, four of the five risk behaviors were significantly associated with PDV victimization (Table 2). The only risk behavior not significantly associated with PDV victimization in the multivariable model was current cigarette use. When male and female students were analyzed separately, three of the five risk behaviors (currently sexually active, attempted suicide, and physical fighting) were significantly associated with PDV victimization in the multivariable model. Reported by: MC Black, PhD, R Noonan, PhD, M Legg, MS, Div of Violence Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention; D Eaton, PhD, Div of Adolescent and School Health, National Center For Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion; MJ Breiding, PhD, EIS Officer, CDC. Editorial Note:The findings in this report suggest that PDV victimization affects a substantial number of high school students, with approximately one in 11 reporting PDV victimization during the 12 months preceding the survey, a ratio equating to nearly 1.5 million high school students nationwide. Prevalence of PDV victimization was similar and associated with risk behaviors for both male and female high school students, and no significant increases in PDV victimization were observed by grade level. These results underscore the need for prevention programs directed at both PDV and associated risk behaviors. Choose Respect, a new CDC national initiative, is being launched this month in 10 U.S. cities. This initiative focuses on persons aged 11--14 years and encourages development of healthy relationship behaviors. Choose Respect uses traditional materials (e.g., posters or classroom videos) and nontraditional multimedia (e.g., podcasts or web-based games) to appeal to this age group. The findings in this report are subject to at least five limitations. First, the extent of underreporting or overreporting of risk behaviors cannot be determined, although the survey questions demonstrate good test-retest reliability (8). Second, questions about sexual violence or psychological abuse by a dating partner were not included. Prevalence estimates of dating violence that include sexual and psychological violence likely would be substantially larger and indicate greater levels of sexual victimization among females (3). Third, these data apply only to high school students who were attending school during the survey and, therefore, are not representative of all persons in this age group. In 2001, approximately 5% of persons aged 16--17 years in the United States were not enrolled in a high school program and had not completed high school (9). Fourth, participants were not asked whether they had had a boyfriend or girlfriend during the preceding 12 months; therefore, those reporting no PDV victimization might have included students who had not been dating. Eliminating those who did not date would have increased the prevalence of PDV victimization among those who were dating. Finally, because the survey is cross-sectional in nature, whether the risk behaviors were precursors or consequences of PDV victimization could not be determined. Medical and mental health-care providers and others consulted by teens (e.g., school counselors) should be aware of the prevalence of dating violence and the potential for associated risk behaviors among teens who report dating violence. Appropriate intervention (e.g., referral for counseling) to reduce the likelihood of further victimization is more likely if providers ask about dating violence when speaking with teens. The findings in this report and the resulting recommendations are consistent with recommendations by others that dating violence intervention and prevention can benefit from addressing dating violence in the context of other risk behaviors (4). References 1. Halpern CT, Oslak SG, Young ML, Martin SL, Kupper LL. Partner violence among adolescents in opposite-sex romantic relationships: findings from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Am J Public Health 2001;91:1679--85. 2. Ackard DM, Neumark-Sztainer D. Date violence and date rape among adolescents: associations with disordered eating behaviors and psychological health. Child Abuse Negl 2002;26:455--73. 3. Coker AL, McKeown RE, Sanderson M, Davis KE, Valois RF, Huebner S. Severe dating violence and quality of life among South Carolina high school students. Am J Prev Med 2000;19:220--7. 4. Silverman JG, Raj A, Mucci LA, Hathaway JE. Dating violence against adolescent girls and associated substance use, unhealthy weight control, sexual risk behavior, pregnancy, and suicidality. JAMA 2001;286:572--9. 5. Smith PH, White JW, Holland LJ. A longitudinal perspective on dating violence among adolescent and college-age women. Am J Public Health 2003;93:1104--9. 6. CDC. Costs of intimate partner violence against women in the United States. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2003. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/pub-res/ipv_cost/IPVBook-Final-Feb18.pdf. 7. Grunbaum JA, Kann L, Kinchen S, et al. Youth risk behavior surveillance ---United States, 2003. In: Surveillance Summaries, May 21, 2004. MMWR 2004;53(No. SS-2). 8. Brener ND, Kann L, McManus T, Kinchen SA, Sundberg EC, Ross JG. Reliability of the 1999 Youth Risk Behavior Survey questionnaire. J Adolesc Health 2002;31:336--42. 9. Kaufman P, Alt MN, Chapman C. Dropout rates in the United States: 2001. Washington, DC: US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics; 2004. Publication no. NCES 2005--046. Available at http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2005/2005046.pdf. * In this report, students categorized as black or white were non-Hispanic. Students categorized as Hispanic might be of any race. Table 1

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Table 2

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References: to non-CDC sites on the Internet are provided as a service to MMWR readers and do not constitute or imply endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. CDC is not responsible for the content of pages found at these sites. URL addresses listed in MMWR were current as of the date of publication. | Disclaimer   All MMWR HTML versions of articles are electronic conversions from ASCII text into HTML. This conversion may have resulted in character translation or format errors in the HTML version. Users should not rely on this HTML document, but are referred to the electronic PDF version and/or the original MMWR paper copy for the official text, figures, and tables. An original paper copy of this issue can be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, DC 20402-9371; telephone: (202) 512-1800. Contact GPO for current prices.**Questions or messages regarding errors in formatting should be addressed to mmwrq@cdc.gov. Date last reviewed: 5/17/2006 | | National survey on violence against women risks and consequences. | | https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/183781.pdf