Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 86-90).

abstract: Dating violence in ethnic minority populations is an understudied phenomenon and little attention has been paid to the experiences of Mexican American youth; less research has been done on how those experiences alter perceptions and acceptance of participation in prevention programs. This study advances knowledge on how Mexican American adolescents view dating violence prevention programs and how cultural beliefs and values may hinder or encourage effective participation. Focus groups (N = 9) were form with Mexican American youth aged 15-17 years separated by gender and acculturation status (Mexican Oriented/Bicultural/Anglo Oriented), as determined previously by acculturation scores measured by the Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans (ARMSA; 0 or below = Mexican Oriented, 0-1 = Bicultural, 1 or above = Anglo Oriented). Several themes emerged throughout the focus group discussions that were derived from culturally-based needs. Mexican American adolescents made recommendations for program development (e.g., a broad curriculum beyond the topic of dating violence) and delivery (e.g., barriers to participation, the implications of peer involvement) within the context of their cultural values and needs. Low acculturated and bicultural teens identified specific cultural needs and their relevance within a dating violence prevention program. However, across all groups, adolescents felt that the needs of Mexican American youth were similar to other youth in regards to dating violence prevention programs. Implications for how social work can best design and implement prevention programs for Mexican American adolescents are discussed. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S.W. Social Work 2011

abstract: This study presents a structural model of coping with dating violence. The model integrates abuse frequency and solution attribution to determine a college woman's choice of coping strategy. Three hundred, twenty-four undergraduate women reported being targets of some physical abuse from a boyfriend and responded to questions regarding the abuse, their gender role beliefs, their solution attribution and the coping behaviors they executed. Though gender role beliefs and abuse severity were not significant predictors, solution attribution mediated between frequency of the abuse and coping. Abuse frequency had a positive effect on external solution attribution and external solution attribution had a positive effect on the level of use of active coping, utilization of social support, denial and acceptance. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Counseling Psychology 2011

Loss to follow-up (LTF) is an important issue that can affect the validity of longitudinal studies. Further, LTF among adolescent study participants may be predicted by variables such as substance use, educational attainment, and demographic information. The purpose of this study was to determine if alcohol or marijuana use, high school completion, or demographic information was correlated with LTF among adolescent participants in the Real Talk Study. The Real Talk study is a randomized control trial that employs a brief motivational interview intervention in a clinical setting to reduce perpetration of teen dating violence (TDV) in Boston. Current participants of the Real Talk study who were eligible for follow up comprised the study sample (N=127). Baseline characteristics on age, gender, race/ethnicity, high school completion, alcohol use, and marijuana use were analyzed using Pearson’s Chi Square, and the level of significance set to p < 0.10. A post-hoc analysis was conducted on frequency of alcohol use using Pearson’s Chi Square. Of the total sample, 13% were LTF (n=17). The results of the analyses indicated that there was a statistically significant difference between those LTF and those retained for gender and drinking 6 or more drinks of alcohol per occasion. Females were more likely to be LTF than males (p<0.10), and those participants who responded “never” or “less than monthly” to the question, “how many times do you drink 6 or more drinks per occasion?” were more likely to be retained, or less likely to be LTF (p<0.10) than those who responded differently. While some of the results were consistent with the literature, it is also possible that the follow-up procedure for Real Talk ensured that there were minimal differences in LTF.

Teen dating violence (TDV) affects nearly one third of adolescents in the United States and is increasingly one of the largest public health concerns of health researchers and practitioners. Parent involvement, and specifically messages communicated to children about healthy and unhealthy relationships, has potential to be a vital element of TDV prevention and intervention. Researchers have demonstrated that parent-adolescent communication has significant effects on adolescent risky behavior, but the effect of parent-adolescent communication on TDV has not been investigated. The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between mother-daughter communication quality, mothers' and daughters' beliefs about unhealthy relationships, and the dating violence experienced by adolescents. The sample was 58 adolescent daughters recruited from three rural Oregon high schools and their mothers. Self-report and observational data were collected from daughters and their mothers. It was hypothesized that (1) daughters' dating beliefs mediate the relationship between mothers' dating beliefs and daughters' experienced TDV, (2) mother-daughter communication quality mediates the relationship between mothers' dating beliefs and daughter's dating beliefs, and (3) mother-daughter communication quality mediates the relationship between mothers' dating beliefs and daughter's TDV. Structural equation modeling was used to test three path models where mother-daughter communication was represented by three different measures: daughters' report of having a quality conversation with their mother about dating in the past year, daughters' disagreement during observed mother-daughter communication, and daughters' disagreement during observed mother-daughter communication about dating. All three models were a good fit with the data, and significant associations were found between measures of mother-daughter communication, daughters' beliefs about dating, and daughters' experienced dating violence. Implications of this study include mother-daughter communication, perhaps a representation of a larger construct of mother-daughter relationship quality, as a point of intervention for adolescent girls' experiences of dating violence. Future research and clinical studies are required to further examine the relationships between parent-adolescent communication and TDV and the potential affect that parents may have on rates and experiences of TDV.

Using a purposive sampling technique, this study employed an online questionnaire to assess the relationship between attitudes towards gender-related constructs (e.g. rape myth acceptance, shared power in relationships, the acceptability of dating violence and perceived seriousness of dating violence) and the tolerance of dating violence among undergraduate students in the Faculty of Social Science at the University of Ottawa. Linear regression models were conducted to identify the most salient predictors of the tolerance of dating violence. A general/combined model was examined as well as three subtype-specific models (e.g. psychological, physical and sexual dating violence). A total of seven predictor variables were entered into each model in three blocks: sociodemographic variables were entered first, followed by sex and then gender-related constructs (e.g. rape myth acceptance, power in relationships, the acceptability and seriousness of dating violence). The results identify a number of variables that are associated with the tolerance of dating violence scales and some that led to a decrease in scores on these scales. Findings suggest that the link between gender-related constructs and the tolerance of dating violence is complex and multidimensional and warrants further research to explain the variation observed.

Syftet med denna studie har varit att undersöka ungdomars attityder gällande fysiskt samt sexuellt våld i en känslomässig relation samt deras kännedom om samtyckeslagen och grov kvinnofridskränkning. För att kunna besvara syftet har enkäter delats ut på gymnasieskolor i Malmö vilka ungdomar i åldrarna 16 till 19 år har besvarat. Resultatet visar att det finns en generellt låg acceptans avseende fysiskt och sexuellt våld i en känslomässig relation, för både tjejer och killar. Däremot visar killar en någor högre acceptans än tjejer. Acceptansen för sexuellt våld visade sig även vara något högre i en icke definierad relation jämfört med en fast partnerrelation. Vidare visar resultatet att majoriteten av ungdomarna känner till samtyckeslagen. Däremot är kännedomen om grov kvinnofridskränkning och dess innebörd låg. Den här undersökningen är av explorativ ansats vilket påverkar resultatens generaliserbarhet. Om en mer djupgående forskning av ämnet utförts, hade det troligen genererat en mer beskrivande bild avseende acceptansen för våld i en känslomässig relation. / The purpose of this study was to examine attitudes regarding physical and sexual dating violence and knowledge of two swedish laws: “samtyckeslagen” and “grov kvinnofridskränkning”, amongst Swedish adolescents in the ages of 16 to 19 years old. To be able to fulfill the purpose of this study, a survey was distributed to different high schools in Malmö which the adolescents at the schools answered. The results from our study show that adolescents have a low tolerance for dating violence, regarding physical and sexual abuse. Although boys showed a greater acceptance towards physical and sexual abuse than girls. The acceptance for using physical and sexual abuse was greater in a non defined relationship, than in a defined relationship. Most adolescents had some knowledge of “samtyckeslagen” but very few knew of “grov kvinnofridskränkning”. This study was of an explorative nature which effects how the results can be used. Our results have shown that more thorough studies regarding dating violence should be done. Which would generate a deeper understanding for attitudes and therefore acceptance towards dating violence.

No description available.

Routine Activities Theory (RAT) is one of the most widely used theories to explain victimization. It has been applied to a wide range of criminal victimizations, such as property crimes (Miethe, Stafford, & Long, 1987) and urban murder (Messner & Tardiff, 1985). While traditional RAT has been used to explain violence against women, the feminist perspective of RAT developed by Schwartz and Pitts (1995) provides a better explanation by incorporating cultural factors that shape the conditions that give rise to offending. The current study draws on feminist RAT in order to explore three different types of victimization involving women: stalking, dating violence and sexual violence. In doing so, the current study extends the RAT and feminist RAT literature by more thoroughly exploring what it means to be a capable guardian and by incorporating literature on bystander intervention. Though bystander intervention literature and feminist RAT literature are similar in that they view people as having the ability to prevent violence and crime, the two areas have developed relatively separately and have rarely been integrated together. In addition to expanding the literature on RAT, this study also contributes to the bystander intervention literature by analyzing willingness to intervene in three types of cyber violence against women. Though bystander intervention research has greatly expanded throughout the years, research involving intervention into cyber stalking, cyber dating violence, and cyber sexual violence/harassment are greatly lacking. The current study employed a web based survey to assess bystander intervention in cyber violence and expand feminist and cyber RAT by analyzing victimization. College students were asked to judge their likelihood of intervention in situations involving potential dating violence, sexual harassment, and stalking. In addition, they were asked about their routine activities and components related to the theory, as well as dating violence, sexual violence and stalking victimization. Unsurprisingly, students preferred to intervene in a direct manner. In addition, there were inconsistent findings regarding victimization and routine activities theory. The results of the study are discussed in terms of implications for the development of bystander intervention programs and will expand the feminist RAT literature.