Looking for an easy way to get caught up on the latest in teen dating violence research? Up-to-date, empirical research has a critical role to play in the practice of Teen Dating Violence intervention programs, and PREVNet aims to support ease-of-access to this research.
A number of cutting-edge research articles have been selected for their direct applicability to our Community of Practice projects, and two-page summaries have been generated from each article. Each month, we’ll feature four of these plain-language summaries in a blog post. Whether you are a part of PREVNet’s Community of Practice Addressing Youth Dating Violence, or a parent, caregiver, or educator, these research summaries will provide you with the crucial information needed for teen dating violence awareness and intervention.
You can view all of our research summaries here, or keep reading to see the featured articles for May.
Psychological Teen Dating Violence
Psychological aggression is the act of threatening or manipulating a partner and is the most commonly experienced form of teen dating violence. This study found that a majority of adolescents engage in low levels of psychological teen dating violence perpetration, and that there are various characteristics and risk factors that may contribute to committing higher levels of psychological dating violence. This article highlights that there are distinct psychological dating violence perpetrator profiles, which is important for prevention efforts.
Read the two-page summary here.
Full Reference: Lapierre, A., Paradis, A., Todorov, E., Blais, M., & Hébert, M. (2019). Trajectories of psychological dating violence perpetration in adolescence. Child Abuse & Neglect, 97, 104167.
Adolescent Stalking and Risk of Violence
This study examined the types and frequency of stalking behaviour among youth, and the connection between stalking and other violent behaviour. This study identified distinct profiles of stalking behaviour and can provide researchers with a better understanding to inform prevention strategies.
Read the two-page summary here.
Full Reference: Smith-Darden, J. P., Reidy, D. E., & Kernsmith, P. D. (2016). Adolescent stalking and risk of violence. Journal of Adolescence, 52, 191-200.
The Development of Teen Dating Violence
This study provides an overview of factors that may contribute to teen dating violence from a developmental perspective. The paper explores how dating violence may develop on an individual level in relation to family and peer influences. This research suggests that by understanding the influences on aggressive and violent behaviours in relationships, we can work to prevent and intervene with positive, healthy, and pro-social behaviours
Read the two-page summary here.
Full Reference: Pepler, D. (2012). The development of dating violence: what doesn’t develop, what does develop, how does it develop, and what can we do about it. Prev Sci, 13, 402-409.
Text Message Campaigns to Promote Healthy Relationships
While there is evidence that some school-based preventative programs can decrease teen dating violence in high schools, many schools may not have the resources to use these intervention programs. This highlights the need for school-based health intervention programs to use methods such as text messaging to increase awareness of healthy and unhealthy teen relationships. The researchers in this study pilot tested the design of a cost-effective text messaging program called the healthy relationships campaign (HRC) to reduce dating violence and promote healthy relationships.
Read the two-page summary here.
Full Reference: Guillot-Wright. S. P., Lu, Y., Torres, E. D., Le, V., Hall, R. H., Temple, J. R. (2018). Design and feasibility of a school-based text message campaign to promote healthy relationships. School Mental Health, 10(4), 428-436.
