Dating Violence as Predictor of Suicidal Thoughts and Plans among Adolescents

Background: One in seven high school students in the United States reports suicidal thoughts. During the same time period, the prevalence of dating and dating violence increases. The purpose of this study is to examine the association between physical dating violence and suicidal thoughts or plans in a longitudinal cohort of students evaluated annually from Grades 9-12. Methods: The sample consisted of 556 randomly-selected students (50.2% males; 47.5% White, 37.8% Black, 11.2% Latino) who reported dating at least once during the four assessments. Self-reported frequency of suicidal thoughts/plans during the past 12 months, dating, physical dating violence perpetration and victimization during the past 3 months were assessed each spring from ninth to twelfth grade. Generalized estimating equations modeling was used to predict the effects of gender, race, dating, school grade, physical victimization and perpetration on the suicidal thoughts /plans. Analyses were conducted with SAS 9.2. Results: The prevalence of suicidal thoughts/plans in Grades 9-12 was 13.8%, 12.1%, 13.3%, and 9.4%, respectively. Cumulatively, 25.5% of the sample reported suicidal thoughts/plans at least once by the end of Grade 12. Female gender (OR=1.7, p=0.02), physical dating victimization (OR=2.03, p<0.001), physical dating perpetration (OR=1.54, p=0.048), and lower grades in high school (OR=1.83, p=0.004) were significant predictors of suicidal thoughts/plans. However, race and dating were not significant predictors among adolescents in this sample. Conclusion: Prevalence of suicidal thoughts/plans was similar to the national averages. This longitudinal study highlights the detrimental emotional effect of physical dating violence perpetration and victimization, particularly among girls.