This study examined patterns of acceptance of dating violence and teen dating victimization (TDV) across time.
Teen dating violence (TDV) is a pervasive issue in adolescence and has been linked to maladjustment (Temple, Shorey, Fite et al., 2013). Physical dating violence is a particularly significant problem, with one in five adolescents reporting experiencing physical teen dating violence (TDV; Wincentak et al., 2017). Acceptance of violence has been suggested to increase the risk of TDV; however, most studies to date have been cross-sectional. In the current study, participants were ethnically diverse teenagers (N=1,042; ages 13-18) who were followed over a 4-year period. Multivariate latent growth curve modeling techniques were used to determine trajectories of physical TDV victimization and attitudes accepting of dating violence. Results showed two trajectories for physical TDV victimization, linear and quadratic, and two trajectories for acceptance of dating violence, non-linear and quadratic. Parallel models investigating the interplay between TDV victimization and acceptance demonstrated two possible trends; however, the study did not find any evidence of a longitudinal relationship between the two variables, suggesting that change in acceptance was not related to change in physical TDV victimization. Instead, findings suggest a significant amount of heterogeneity in these trajectories. Studies are still needed to further explore longitudinal patterns of TDV to better understand how to reduce the risk of teen dating violence. (publisher abstract modified)