Dating Violence Against Adolescent Girls and Associated Substance Use, Unhealthy Weight Control, Sexual Risk Behavior, Pregnancy, and Suicidality

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women is a major public health concern. Estimates from a recent large-scale, nationally representative survey¹ indicate that more than 1.5 million women are physically and/or sexually abused by an intimate partner each year in the United States, and 25% will experience IPV at some point during their lifetimes. Research among adults has shown that younger age is a consistent risk factor for experiencing and perpetrating IPV.^2-4 Rates of IPV among nonrepresentative samples indicate that approximately 25% of adolescents have experienced physical and/or sexual dating violence,^5,6 an estimate consistent with the estimated lifetime prevalence of IPV among adult women.¹ However, no representative epidemiologic studies of lifetime prevalence of physical and sexual dating violence experienced by adolescents have been conducted to provide a reliable estimate of the scope of the problem, indicate which groups of adolescents may be at greatest risk, or assess whether other health risks faced by adolescents are associated with a history of IPV.