Factors that are correlated with girlfriends perpetrating non-physical dating violence against urban black men

Young urban Black men may be disproportionately affected by non-physical dating violence victimization. To date, there is a lack of investigation of men's experiences with relationship violence perpetrated by their girlfriend. The goal of the current study is to examine the association of variables identified by public health and relationship violence theories that may begin to explain the phenomenon of heterosexual male victimization of non-physical dating violence. Street-intercept surveys (n=101) were conducted among a sample of Black males aged 18-25 years old at a subway station in Brooklyn, New York. Spearman's correlation coefficients identified significant positive relationships between “Girlfriend Behaviors” and several variables; “Knowledge” (r = .38, p = .000), “Perceived Susceptibility” (r = .48, p = .000), “Threatening and Controlling Behavior” (r = .30, p < .01), and “Isolation” (r = .51, p = .000). Young men's experiences with non-physical dating violence appears to be associated with several variables. Further research is needed to examine which of these variables may predict whether or not young Black men may experience non-physical dating violence from their girlfriends.