Exploring Childhood Trauma and Teen Dating Violence Experiences among a Clinical Sample of Youth Throughout NYC
Abstract
Teen dating violence (TDV) has been identified as a public health concern. Awareness about TDV and prevention efforts has been a focal point for entities such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). While there has been significant effort to address the issue, it continues to be an ongoing concern. Prevalence of TDV is often difficult to accurately measure due to issues in the definitions of TDV behavior. Further information on the contributing factors of TDV is needed. While there is extensive research regarding TDV perpetration and victimization, there is limited research with marginalized populations. These vulnerable populations are impacted by TDV however; the opportunity to explore their experiences is limited. Children who have been impacted by trauma represent a group that maybe particularly vulnerable to TDV. The purpose of this exploratory study was to further explore the relationship between childhood trauma and TDV. A quantitative cross sectional design was utilized. Secondary analysis of surveys (ACES & relationship survey) focused on gathering information regarding childhood trauma and dating experiences, this study provided details about the relationship between childhood trauma and TDV. Findings from this study demonstrated that there was an association between childhood trauma and TDV. Particularly, childhood sexual abuse, childhood physical abuse and childhood exposure to domestic violence were predictive factors in TDV experiences. The study found that psychological abuse was the most common form of TDV that adolescent reported being survivors of and perpetrating. This information provides additional support for the need to create trauma informed TDV prevention programs.
Subject Area
Social psychology|Social work|Public health
Recommended Citation
Clarke, Diaon, "Exploring Childhood Trauma and Teen Dating Violence Experiences among a Clinical Sample of Youth Throughout NYC" (2018). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI10811258.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI10811258
