Five Things About Teen Dating Violence

Addressing teen dating violence, which includes physical, sexual, and psychological abuse, is a priority for healthy youth development. Teens who experience dating violence – particularly when their victimizations go untreated – may be at increased risk for a range of negative outcomes, including involvement in further intimate partner violence as adults. This National Institute of Justice (NIJ) factsheet discusses what has been learned from NIJ-sponsored research about how to understand and respond to teen dating violence. NIJ elaborates on the following five things about teen dating violence:

1. Teen dating relationships that involve violence often involve mutual violence; 
2. Teen dating violence does not tend to occur in single, isolated instances;
3. A range of risk factors are associated with becoming involved in teen dating violence;
4. Teen dating violence is associated with a range of short- and long-term negative outcomes; and
5. Programs to reduce teen dating violence perpetration and victimization have demonstrated effectiveness.