Assessment of college students with the revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2): Sociodemographic characteristics and relationship

ABSTRACT

This paper presents prevalence data gathered from the fast-growing metropolitan southeast in the United States college campus representative sample through an on-line 28-question survey on the sexual, physical, and psychological harm in university/college dating and domestic violence relationships. The study questions were 1) what is the prevalence of dating and domestic violence on college campus? and 2) what are the characteristics of those affected by it? The results, derived from the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2) and the dating experiences survey, reveal that college students’ gender identity, sexual orientation, grade point average (GPA), number of missing classes, current relationship status that they were associated with dating and domestic violence among college students. Statistically significant relationships were found between sexual violence and participants’ sexual orientation and the length of their romantic relationship as well as physical violence, including hitting and shoving, and participants’ sexual orientation and their class attendance. Institutional responses to prevent campus violence through prevention training, education, and intervention services could lower the prevalence of dating and help alleviate the adverse effects that it could have on college students.     

Perceived consequences of hazing exposure during the first year of college: Associations with childhood victimization

Objective: This study investigates the association between histories of childhood victimization and perceived consequences of college hazing. Participants: First-year college students at four US universities (N?=?120). Method: Participants completed Web-based surveys asking about childhood victimization (eg, child maltreatment), peer victimization, and perceived consequences of hazing during college. Results: Results indicated that college students with childhood victimization histories perceived hazing to be negative. In particular, physical dating violence and a greater total number of childhood victimization exposures were related to a higher number of perceived negative consequences. Conclusion: Past victimization exposures confer risk on college students who experience hazing, in that these students are more likely to perceive negative consequences of hazing. Hazing-related policies and outreach efforts should consider these potential negative consequences, and counselors should be aware of the link between past victimization and how hazing might be experienced.     

Dating Violence Among Chinese American and White Students

SUMMARY

A sample of 289 Chinese American and 138 White students from a university campus was recruited from social science courses to complete a survey on perceptions of and experiences with dating violence and gender role beliefs. White students were more likely to define dating violence as physical and sexual aggression compared to the Chinese American students. Although the majority of students from both ethnic groups did not agree that dating violence is justified under various circumstances, the Chinese American students were more likely to provide a contextual justification for the use of dating violence. Findings also indicated that 20% of Chinese American students and 31.3% of the White students have experienced some form of physical dating violence since they started dating. For both the Chinese American and White students, those who were more likely to agree that various acts of physical aggression are considered dating violence were less likely to perpetrate physical dating violence in the last 12 months. The sociocultural context of dating violence and implications for practice and research are discussed.     

Perceptions of sexual coercion in heterosexual dating relationships: the role of aggressor gender and tactics

A large body of research has found a concerning prevalence rate of sexual coercion in heterosexual college student dating relationships; however, little research has examined how college students perceive and interpret these behaviors. In the current study we examined the impact of initiator gender and sexually coercive strategy (verbal pressure, purposeful intoxication, physical force, or control/mutual consent) on perceptions of the aggressor, victim, behavior, and relationship quality. Results indicated that men who coerce are viewed as aggressive; women who coerce are viewed as promiscuous. Targets of sexual coercion are not perceived as experiencing high levels of victimization following the incident. These findings suggest that college students do not perceive sexually coercive behaviors to be highly problematic. The results are discussed in terms of gender roles and practical implications for college student relationships.     

The influence of childhood maltreatment and self-control on dating violence: a comparison of college students in the United States and South Korea

Various aspects of social learning and self-control theories have been applied to partner violence among multiple samples in the United States, but these theoretical approaches have been less commonly studied cross-culturally. Consequently, childhood maltreatment and low self-control have been identified as risk factors for various outcomes in primarily American samples. This study examined the relationships between childhood maltreatment, low self-control, and dating violence among college students in South Korea and the United States. Findings indicated that experiencing childhood maltreatment and having low self-control were key predictors of perpetration and victimization for both psychological and physical relationship violence. Witnessing interparental violence during childhood was less consistently predictive of one's involvement in a violent dating relationship. Implications for theory and policy are discussed.     

The role of social support in the psychological well-being of African American girls who experience dating violence victimization

The goals of this study were to test the relationship between dating violence victimization (i.e., verbal, emotional, and physical abuse) and psychological well-being (i.e., depressive symptomatology, self-esteem, and body image) among 522 African American girls, and to determine whether social support acted as a buffer of negative effects (moderator) or as an intervening factor (mediator) in the relationship between dating violence victimization and psychological well-being. Results from structural equation modeling indicated that dating violence victimization was associated with negative psychological outcomes. Although social support did not moderate this relationship, it served as a mediator of the relationship between dating violence victimization and psychological well-being. Dating violence programs for African American girls should consider how to incorporate family, church, and other networks in the community to foster support, and allow adolescent girls to discuss their abusive experiences in a nonblaming environment. If programs are able to buoy girls who experience dating violence, then they may be able to ameliorate the associated negative psychological sequelae.     

Physical,sexual and psychological abuse in high school dating relationships: Prevalence rates and self-esteem issues

The present study examined the rates of victimization by physical, sexual and psychological abuse in adolescent dating relationships, with self-esteem being explored as a mediating variable. Subjects included 257 students from a coed, ethnically diverse, religiously affiliated high school. Information was obtained using a self-report questionnaire on teenage dating behaviors. Of the 114 male and 118 female subjects who had dating experience, 59% had been victimized at least once in some past or current dating relationship by physical violence, 96% had experienced some form of psychological maltreatment and 15% had been forced to engage in sexual activity. Significantly more males than females reported experiencing physical abuse overall. Significantly more males than females experienced acts of moderate physical abuse, while there was no significant gender difference in the experience of acts of severe physical abuse. Thirteen percent of the subjects stated they had remained in a physically abusive relationship at one time, with females being more likely to remain than males. Self-esteem was not a factor in the level of physical abuse sustained in dating relationships, nor was there a significant difference in the levels of self-esteem between subjects who remained in, terminated, or never were involved in, physically abusive dating relationships. For all subjects, self-esteem negatively correlated with the level of psychological maltreatment sustained in dating relationships, but separate analysis by gender found the correlation was significant only for female subjects.     

Attitudes affecting physical dating violence perpetration and victimization: findings from adolescents in a high-risk urban community

This study examines the associations between attitudes supporting physical dating violence against boys hitting girls and girls hitting boys and experiences with physical dating violence perpetration and victimization among youth in a high-risk community. Cross-sectional logistic regression analyses are based on data from the Youth Violence Survey, conducted in 2004, and administered to more than 80% of public school students in grades 7, 9, 11, and 12 (N = 4,131) in an urban school district. Findings show that attitudes supporting physical dating violence against boys and girls are significantly associated with physical dating violence perpetration and victimization. Prevention programs that seek to reduce physical dating violence among adolescents may benefit from including sex-specific attitude modification as part of a comprehensive violence prevention approach.     

Gender differences of psychological abuse in high school dating relationships

It is becoming increasingly evident that physical abuse is often accompanied by psychological abuse in marital as well as college dating relationships. However, no known research has been conducted to examine psychological abuse in the high school population, nor have gender differences been explored in relationship to psychological abuse of high school students. For this study, the Psychological Maltreatment of Women Inventory (PMWI) has been modified so that it could explore the experiences of psychological abuse of 736 male and female respondents from a large Midwest school.T-tests were performed to examine gender differences of overall and individual scores of psychological abuse. Loglinear analysis was used to examine relationships between psychological abuse, severity of physical abuse and stage of the dating relationship. Results indicated that overall, there was little psychological abuse occurring in high school dating relationships, but detected six items of specific gender differences. It was found that dating couples were likely to experience significantly more psychological abuse in relationships where severe physical violence was occurring. No significant interactions were found between psychological abuse, gender, and the various stages of the dating relationship, i.e. casual dating, serious dating. Although overall, minimal psychological abuse was found, regression analysis indicated a significant relationship between total physical violence and six individual psychological abuse items. Findings are compared to the literature on college dating violence and marital abuse.     

The effect of a college sexual assault prevention program on first-year students' victimization rates

OBJECTIVE: Although a variety of sexual assault prevention programs are currently available to college health professionals, there is a dearth of information about the effect of these programs on sexual assault victimization rates. PARTICIPANTS: The authors evaluated the efficacy of a sexual assault prevention program for first-year students at a college in the Northeast (N = 1,982). METHODS: They used a retrospective cohort design and assessed the prevalence of sexual assault victimization among students exposed to the sexual assault prevention program and students 1 year their senior who were not exposed. RESULTS: Students who had no exposure were more likely to report that they were sexually assaulted during their first year of college (odds ratio = 1.74, 95% confidence interval [1.32-2.29]). Results suggest that the program was effective for males and females, but not for students with a prior history of sexual assault victimization. Gay, lesbian, and bisexual students were at increased risk for victimization as compared with heterosexual students, and students who drank alcohol or engaged in binge drinking were at increased risk as compared with alcohol abstinent students. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that this program had a positive effect on victimization rates for certain sub-groups of students.     

Sexual violence victimization among female secondary school students in eastern Ethiopia

Behavioral, lifestyle, and relationship factors have all been identified as risk factors that increase a woman's vulnerability to sexual violence victimization. However, it remains unclear which risk factors most strongly increase young women's vulnerability to sexual violence victimization because most studies only examine a few factors simultaneously. Using a cross-sectional sample of 764 female secondary school students from eastern Ethiopia, multivariate analyses revealed that high-rejection sensitivity, having multiple sexual partners, the frequent watching of pornography, and use of alcohol or other soft drugs (Khat or shisha) are factors associated with higher levels of sexual violence victimization. The overall rates of victimization is high in this group, with 68% of the young women studied having experienced at least one instance of sexual violence victimization. Based on type of sexual perpetration, 52% of the young women were victimized by at least one instance of sexual offence, 56% by sexual assault, 25% by sexual coercion, and 15% by sexual aggression. Qualitative data gathered from interviews of extracurricular club members and school officials and focus group discussion with students were used to further augment and illustrate results from the quantitative data. Several suggestions for intervention are presented in light of these results.     

The role of fathers in reducing dating violence victimization and sexual risk behaviors among a national sample of Black adolescents

PurposeStructural equation modeling (SEM) was used to explore the impact of father-figures' involvement on reducing both dating violence and sexual risk among a national sample of Black American youth well as the possible mediating effect of dating violence on the relationship between father figure involvement and sexual risk behaviors.MethodsTo explore this phenomenon, sexually active Black adolescents between the ages of 13–21 with a romantic partner in the previous 18 months were selected (N = 422) from wave II of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.ResultsThe analyses indicated that overall, perceived closeness to father figures reduced dating violence victimization among Black youth. When separated by gender, our hypothesis for male respondents was supported indicating that perceived closeness with their father figures resulted in a reduction in dating violence. However, the same hypothesis was not supported for female respondents. On the other hand, perceived closeness to father figures resulted in lower sexual risk behaviors for girls.ConclusionGiven the study's findings, researchers, practitioners, and policy makers should consider the importance of the father–child relationship in reducing problem behaviors among Black adolescents. In particular, emphasis should be given to the quality of the father–child relationship rather than general father involvement in reducing dating violence victimization and risky sexual behavior among sexually experienced Black adolescents.     

Gender differences in psychological,physical, and sexual aggression among college students using the revised conflict tactics scales

In response to criticisms of the Conflict Tactics Scales, Straus revised the original scale to include sexual aggression and injury. The purpose of the present study was to use this new scale to replicate and expand existing knowledge of psychological, physical, and sexual aggression in dating relationships. Four-hundred-eighty-one college students completed the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales. As expected, females reported perpetrating more psychological aggression than males; there were no gender differences in reported physical aggression; and psychological and physical aggression tended to co-occur. Contrary to previous research, there were no gender differences in injuries. As expected, males reported perpetrating more sexual coercion than females; however, females also reported perpetrating sexual aggression, and there were no gender differences in reported victimization. For males, sexual coercion perpetration (not victimization) was related to the perpetration and victimization of physical and psychological aggression. For females, both sexual coercion perpetration and victimization were related to the perpetration and victimization of psychological aggression and victimization from physical aggression, but not to physical aggression perpetration.     

Attitudes toward dating violence among college students in mainland China: an exploratory study

This study investigates attitudes toward psychological and physical dating violence among college students in mainland China (n = 245). The results of this study indicate that among our sample of college students in mainland China, men and women were relatively similar in their attitudes toward male perpetrated and female perpetrated physical dating violence and female perpetrated psychological dating violence. As has been found in previous research, men and women in our sample were more accepting of female perpetrated physical and psychological dating violence than male perpetrated physical and psychological dating violence. Finally, among several variables that predicted dating violence attitudes, shame emerged as a potentially important variable to include in future studies on dating violence in Chinese populations.     

Stopping the Hate: Applying Insights on Bullying Victimization to Understand and Reduce the Emergence of Hate in Schools*

Scholars and educators study how the school climate influences aggressive behaviors like bullying. Far less research examines the relationship between school climate and hateful actions. This study addresses that gap by examining students’ perceptions and observations of the school climate with a nationally representative sample of U.S. middle and high school students. These data include reports of hateful verbal victimization and observations of hateful words and symbols. While some speculate that bullying and hate are separate phenomena, results indicate that school climates which reduce bullying victimization also reduce this study's measures of hate. One difference is that the presence of security guards or police has no effect on bullying victimization while it is associated with increased reports of hateful incidents. The results are interpreted in light of current efforts to reduce school violence and concerns over the role of harsh punishment and law enforcement in school. While one cannot conclude that bullying and hate are empirically distinct from these findings, they point to strategies to combine formal social control and efforts to improve school climate through forming positive social bonds between students and authority figures. This can keep students safe from both violence and hate.     

Dating Relationship Dynamics,Mental Health,and Dating Victimization: A Longitudinal Path Analysis

The purpose of this study was to assess the longitudinal association between adolescent dating relationship dynamics (measures of intimacy and problem dynamics), mental health, and physical and/or sexual victimization by a dating partner. Gender‐stratified analyses were conducted in a sample of 261 adolescents, ages 10–18 at baseline, interviewed in three annual waves (2013–2015) of the nationally representative Survey on Teen Relationships and Intimate Violence (STRiV). Among male daters, better mental health at baseline was negatively associated with problem dynamics at follow‐up, and aspects of problem dynamics at baseline predicted worse mental health at follow‐up. However, unexpectedly, aspects of relationship intimacy at baseline were also negatively associated with mental health at follow‐up. Male daters’ victimization did not mediate longitudinal measures of mental health or of relationship dynamics, but did predict worse mental health at follow‐up. Among female daters, we found no longitudinal associations between mental health and intimacy or problem relationship dynamics, in either direction. However, victimization mediated aspects of female daters’ reported relationship dynamics. Dating violence prevention efforts should reflect that adolescent females reporting controlling behaviors and feelings of passionate love may be at increased risk for victimization. Positive youth development efforts should attend to the bidirectional associations of mental health and dating relationship dynamics over time, particularly for male adolescents.     

Gender,relationship stage,and sexual behavior: the importance of partner emotional investment within specific situations

This study examined the relationship of type of sexually instigating situation (partner behavior conveying emotional investment or not), relationship stage, and gender to self-reported likelihood of engaging in sexual behavior. Participants (200 female and 122 male college students) read scenarios describing partner behavior in eight hypothetical sexual situations. Five of the sexual situations were proposed to explicitly communicate a sense of emotional investment in the relationship, and three other scenarios were conceived as not explicitly conveying emotional investment. Emotional investment situations were hypothesized to influence likelihood ratings as a function of imagined relationship stage (dating or in a serious relationship), manipulated across participants. Situations not conveying investment were hypothesized to influence ratings as a function of both relationship stage and gender. In large part, hypotheses were confirmed. The few exceptions were consistent with other gender-role considerations related to trust and power.