Predictors of Physical and Dating Violence in Middle and High School Students in the United States

• Published in: Crime and delinquency Vol. 64; no. 5; pp. 625 - 649
• Main Authors: Higgins, George E., Marcum, Catherine D., Nicholson, Jason, Weiner, Phillip
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-05-2018; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Adolescents; Age groups; Aggressiveness; Dating; Domestic violence; Intimate partner violence; Middle school students; Minority students; Psychic assault; Risk behavior; Routine activities; School violence; Secondary school students; Secondary schools; Youth; United States > US; quantitative; domestic violence; theory
• ISSN: 0011-1287; 1552-387X
• DOI: 10.1177/0011128717719428

Dating violence is a growing and prominent problem for today’s middle and high school students. Intimate partner violence, which can include physical, sexual, emotional, and psychological aggression, affects millions of individuals worldwide. This specific study will examine one age group affected by this rampant phenomenon: adolescents under the age of 18. The purpose of this study is to continue the examination of correlates of dating violence, specifically physical and sexual, through the analysis of data from the 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey and application of Routine Activities Theory. Results support hypotheses that the components of Routine Activities Theory are moderate to strong predictors of physical and sexual dating violence in adolescents.