NCJ Number
189200
Journal
Violence and Victims Volume: 16 Issue: 3 Dated: June 2001 Pages: 339-348
Date Published
June 2001
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This study seeks to identify high school students' actions in response to physical aggression in their dating relationships, and the association of these actions with race/ethnicity and gender.
Abstract
From a sample of New York high school students (n=476) from a large, metropolitan area on Long Island, a subsample who reported that they had experienced at least one episode of physical aggression in a dating relationship (n=183) served as the sample of interest. All students were participants in a longitudinal study to evaluate the efficacy of a dating violence prevention program. On average, students engaged in two help-seeking actions, with females reporting more actions than males. Overall, the most common responses to physical aggression in a dating relationship were aggressive action (i.e., fight back), informal help seeking, threatened or actual breakup, and doing nothing (males) or crying (females). Females were more likely to fight back than were males, and race was largely unrelated to students' actions. The study suggests that future research should build upon these findings and delineate students' perceptions about the efficacy of their actions. In addition, it observes a need for studies that distinguish the time relationship between actions taken and subsequent effects on the individual and relationship. Tables, notes, references