Longitudinal association of physical dating violence perpetration with weapons, suicidal ideation, and substance abuse: Trajectories from middle to high school

Background: The Healthy Teens Longitudinal Study followed a cohort of adolescents from Grades 6-12. Across middle and high school, we observed two trajectories of physical dating violence perpetration (PDVP): Low and Increasing. Using Problem Behavior Theory (PBT), this presentation examines whether adolescents in these two trajectories differ longitudinally on other problem behaviors: weapon-carrying, threats with a weapon, suicidal ideation and attempts, and substance abuse. Methods: The sample consisted of 558 randomly-selected students (52% males; 49% White, 36% Black, 12% Latino) who reported dating at least twice during the seven assessments. Students completed a self-reported, computer-based survey each spring from Grades 6-12. To examine significant differences by PDVP trajectory, we used Chi-square test and Generalized Estimating Equations modeling. Results: Across most grades, significantly more students in Increasing than Low PDVP group carried a weapon, threatened someone with a weapon, and reported suicidal ideation and attempts. Adolescents in the Increasing PDVP also had higher trajectories of alcohol use, binge drinking, and marijuana use than adolescents in the Low PDVP. All differences were already significant in Grade 6. The difference in the rate of change (slope) between groups was not significant. Conclusion: This longitudinal study highlights that these problem behaviors—physical dating violence, weapon carrying/threats, marijuana and alcohol use, and suicidal ideation/attempts–cluster together as early as in middle school and the clustering persists over time, as supported by PBT. The combination of these behaviors poses a great public health concern. Further research should examine underlying shared risk factors.