VARIABLES RELATED TO ATTITUDES TOWARD DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND USE OF REASONING, VERBAL AGGRESSION, AND VIOLENT CONFLICT TACTICS IN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

Abstract

It is estimated that 20 to 30% of adolescents experience dating violence. Identifying variables that are related to dating violence could help in reducing the rates of this abuse. This study investigated how gender, self-esteem, attitudes towards cohabitation, family openness, parents’ annual income, and race were related to attitude towards dating violence, and use of reasoning, verbal aggression, and violent acts. The 122 participants in this study were high school students from California. Each completed a detailed questionnaire. Demographic information, along with scores for self-esteem, attitude toward cohabitation, and family openness, was used in a step-wise multiple regression to assess their relationships with attitudes about dating violence; and use of reasoning, verbal aggression, and violent acts in resolving conflicts with dating partners. The results of this study revealed that higher scores of family openness were related to more use of reasoning in dating conflicts verses more violent tactics. Also, low scores on self-esteem were related to high amounts of verbal aggression. Implications for family and consumer sciences educators are also discussed. While the area of domestic violence has been at the forefront of study since the 1970s, more recently there has been an interest in understanding the causes of dating violence.