Dating violence among racially diverse middle school students


Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

3134.0: Monday, December 12, 2005 - 10:30 AM

Abstract #111953

Elena Font Calafell, MA, violence prevention, cook county department of public health, 1010 lake street, oak park, IL IL, 60301, 708-492-2145, elfont@cookcountygov.com and Richard Scott, MA, MSW, Office of Violence Prevention, Cook County Department of Public Health, 1010 Lake Street, Suite 300, Oak Park, IL 60301.

Purpose: Since research on dating violence has focused mainly on White, middle class college students, the Cook County Department of Public Health investigated the prevalence of dating violence and its relationship to male power beliefs among racially/ethnically diverse middle school students. Methods: Data was obtained from an evidenced based prevention project, Teens Learning to Choose, designed to prevent dating violence. Data was collected from 10 schools in suburban Cook County, Illinois during the school year 1999-2000 and 2001-2002. A sample of 922 African-American (67.7%), Caucasian (6.7%), and Hispanic (23.5%) seventh and eighth grade students completed a self-administered questionnaire designed to measure dating violence behaviors, normative beliefs about violence and gender stereotyping. The design was a descriptive cross-sectional survey study. Results: Among the 91.5% (n=801) of students who reported dating experience, 43% (n=341) were perpetrators and 52.5% (n=411) were victims of some form of violence. A total of 256 adolescents reported both victimization and perpetration. Girls were significantly more likely to report perpetration of physical violence whereas boys were significantly more likely to report perpetration of sexual abuse. African-Americans were significantly more likely than Hispanics and Caucasians to report perpetration of dating violence. A mediational analysis failed to confirm that attitudes emphasizing male power were a predictor of dating violence. Conclusions: The finding that males experienced more physical dating abuse than their female counterparts requires a reexamination of prevailing theories and interventions that did not consider the emergence of mutually abusive patterns among adolescent males and females.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

1. Describe the prevalence rates of dating violence among racially/diverse middle school students as well as recognize that dating violence is a serious common phenomenon among middle school students that is characterized by mutual violence.
2. Recognize the need for early intervention in developing or selecting dating violence prevention curriculum or programs that are not based on the domestic violence model, in which females are described as victims and males as abusers.
3. Prioritize use of dating violence prevention program components that include gender neutral materials emphasizing that both males and females can be either victims or perpetrators of dating violence.

Keywords: Children and Adolescents, Domestic Violence

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Threats in School-from Violence to Rabies

The 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition (December 10-14, 2005) of APHA