Dating violence is a pattern of any type of controlling, abusive, and aggressive behavior in a romantic relationship. It can include physical, emotional, verbal or sexual abuse.
Teen dating violence is more common than anyone wants to believe.
Fast Facts
- 1 in 10 high school students has experienced physical violence from a dating partner in the past year.1
- 15-40% of youth report perpetrating some form of violence towards a dating partner.1
- Female students experienced higher rates of physical and sexual dating violence than male students.2
- Students who identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community experience higher rates of physical and sexual dating violence compared to students who identify as heterosexual.2
- 43% of dating college women report experiencing violent and abusive dating behaviors including physical, sexual, digital, verbal, or other controlling abuse.3
- Nearly 1 in 3 college women (29%) say they’ve been in an abusive dating relationship.3
Abuse can happen to anyone on any day. It is blind to race, gender, age, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, level of education, religion.
Click around the RESPOND site to learn more, or call RESPOND’s Support Line at (617) 623-5900 to speak with a certified Domestic Violence Counselor. All services are free and confidential.
Bibliography
1 “Dating Matters: Strategies to Promote Healthy Teen Relationships,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/datingmatters_flyer_2012-a.pdf
2 “Teen Dating Violence”, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/intimatepartnerviolence/teendatingviolence/fastfact.html
3 “2011 College Dating Violence and Abuse Poll”, Knowledge Networks, Inc. for Liz Clairborne Inc. https://www.loveisrespect.org/pdf/College_Dating_And_Abuse_Final_Study.pdf