Relationship violence among young urban Latino adults – using a socio-ecological model to understand the role of family and community

Aim: to explore dating violence experienced by young Latino adults in urban communities marked by poverty, substandard housing and limited job opportunities, through focusing on conflict as it relates to couple, family and social roles in the context of the community and features of the built environment. Methods: Ninety of 250 Latino young adults screened in clinics in Latino neighborhoods were positive for relationship violence (as perpetrator, recipient or both) in their current relationship. Of these, 20 men and 20 women participated in semi-structured interviews exploring violence in their current relationship, including family and community context. Interviews were conducted in Spanish and English, transcribed, coded and then analyzed data using NVivo. Results: The narratives provide an understanding of the dynamics of young adult relationship violence in the context of an urban community, and how social and cultural norms affect the occurrence and direction(s) of violence. Participants revealed how relationship violence was influenced by gendered expectations regarding group and couple social behavior as well as differential rights to inhabit public spaces. Additionally, interviewees underscored how the lack of both privacy and social space in the built environment exacerbated ongoing and unresolved conflict. Conclusions: These narratives bring into relief the dynamic interplay between factors operating on multiple levels, the individual, the couple, peers, family and community including culturally driven social norms. These factors map easily onto a socio-ecological model suggesting that social and spatial interventions may have positive impact in reducing relationship confict and therefore minimize triggers leading to violence.