Online Program

338645
Knowledge, Perceptions, and Prevalence of Teen Dating Violence Amongst High School Students in New Orleans


Sunday, November 1, 2015

Elisabeth Gleckler, Clinical Associate Professor, Global Community Health & Behavioral Sci Department, Tulane University School of Public Health, New Orleans, LA
Sara DeStefano, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
This investigation took place at a high school in the lower ninth ward of New Orleans, a predominantly black, low-income community. Teenagers, women, people of lower socioeconomic status and racial minorities have a higher risk towards experiencing intimate partner violence. Experiencing dating violence at a young age heightens the risk of future intimate partner violence victimization. There is no research on the extent of teen dating violence in New Orleans. The purpose of this study was to assess the current state of dating violence prevalence, perceptions and knowledge of high school teens in Orleans Parish, providing an initial insight for future research and intervention in this community. Sixty-five high school teenagers completed surveys entitled “Knowledge, Perceptions and Prevalence of Teen Dating Violence and Available Resources Amongst High School Students in Orleans Parish.” The results indicated a noticeable difference between male and female experiences of teen dating violence, with males indicating higher levels of victimization. The perceptions of the teens regarding relationship norms supported the male favored victimization findings. The knowledge findings highlighted the need for more education on resources and unhealthy dating behaviors. The results of the study suggest there may be a uniquely vulnerable subset of male teens in this community that are experiencing dating violence and demonstrates a need for furthered educational intervention through healthy dating norms training. More research must be conducted in the New Orleans high school population to better understand and tailor interventions towards lowering teen dating violence rates.

Learning Areas:

Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related education
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe the current prevalence of teen dating violence amongst high school students in Orleans Parish. Evaluate beliefs of high school students regarding gender roles and appropriate behavior in a dating relationship. Define the knowledge of high school students regarding unhealthy relationship signs and available resources to help teens in violent dating relationships.

Keyword(s): Youth Violence, Domestic Violence

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a professor of public health with 25 years of field experience with state and federally-funded, local and multi-state projects. I have a terminal degree, and an MBA. I have been teaching for four years at three different graduate institutions and for three years at the undergraduate level in public health. I am certified MCHES. I was the adviser on the project and involved throughout the thesis, guiding the first author, Sara DeStefano.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.