The Family Context and Adolescent Dating Violence: A Latent Class Analysis of Family Risk and Protective Processes

Introduction: As many as 60% of adolescents have perpetrated or experienced violence in dating relationships, leading to poor physical, academic, social, and mental health outcomes. Compared to other domains (e.g., individual and peer), few studies have assessed the influence of family factors on adolescent dating violence. Family factors may represent risk (e.g., low levels of cohesion and monitoring) or protective (e.g., high levels of structure and prosocial values) processes for adolescent dating violence. The current study identified patterns of family factors associated with dating aggression and victimization among early adolescents.

Methods: Using latent class analysis, classes of family factors were identified based on family structure, family cohesion, parental monitoring, and parental messages (supporting nonviolence and violence) among early adolescents. Associations between membership in these classes and dating aggression and victimization were then assessed. Secondary data analyses were conducted using data from the Multisite Violence Prevention Project (Henry et al., 2004). A total of 495 adolescents (66% male) who had dated at some point in middle school were included in the study (63% African American; 14% Hispanic). Data was collected from adolescents at the beginning of sixth grade, and at three subsequent spring waves through eighth grade.

Results: Three classes emerged: 1) a positive family context with high levels of family factors (i.e., structure, cohesion, monitoring, and parental messages supporting nonviolence) (n = 201, 41%); 2) an average family context with average to high levels of the family factors (n = 119, 24%); and 3) a poor family context with low levels of family factors (n = 168, 34%). Membership in the first two classes listed above, as compared to the third class, was associated with lower frequencies of dating aggression and victimization across middle school.

Conclusions: Adolescents with reported average to high levels of the family factors studied had lower levels of dating violence aggression and victimization across sixth, seventh and eighth grade. Dating violence prevention programs that target these family factors are needed and may decrease the likelihood of adolescents experiencing and perpetrating violence within their dating relationships.