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Aggression in Adolescent Dating Relationships: Prevalence, Justification, and Health Consequences

NCJ Number
218022
Journal
Journal of Adolescent Health Volume: 40 Issue: 4 Dated: April 2007 Pages: 298-304
Author(s)
Marina J. Munoz-Rivas Ph.D.; Jose Luis Grana Ph.D.; K. Daniel O'Leary Ph.D.; M. Pilar Gonzalez M.S.
Date Published
April 2007
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This study sought to determine the prevalence of aggression in dating relationships among adolescents from the community of Madrid in Spain and to describe the typology of violent acts of a verbal and physical nature, the gender and age differences, and the consequences of such aggression for health.
Abstract
Similar to research in the United States, this study showed that physical aggression was present in Spanish adolescents’ dating relationships. Approximately 90 percent of the adolescents surveyed admitted having attacked their partners verbally, and approximately 40 percent said that they engaged in physically aggressive behaviors against their partners. Verbal aggression was shown to be more habitual than physical aggression in adolescents’ dating relationships. When analyzing gender differences, the percentage of women who verbally attacked and carried out minor physical aggressions in their relationships was higher than the percentage for men. Interestingly, the results indicated a high percentage of the physical aggression occurred in the context of joking or playing. Lastly, when analyzing the tendencies of the motives alleged by the youths of different ages, it was observed that, as they grew older, the percentage of aggressors who admitted that their aggression was triggered as a game or because of jealousy tended to decrease. However, the percentage of aggressors who said they were aggressive due to emotional motives increased significantly. Violence between adolescent dating partners remains an understudied issue when compared to IPV between adult partners. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of verbally and physically aggressive behaviors in dating relationships in a sample of 2,416 Spanish adolescents from both genders in Madrid. Tables, references