Title: Parent and Peer Predictors of Physical Dating Violence Perpetration in Early Adolescence: Tests of Moderation and Gender Differences
Abstract: Abstract This study examined parenting and peer predictors of physical dating violence perpetration during early adolescence and tested moderation among these predictors and gender. Participants were 2,824 ethnically diverse sixth-grade students with a recent boyfriend/girlfriend who was part of a multisite, longitudinal investigation of the development and prevention of violence among middle school students. Those students who reported having a boyfriend/girlfriend reported significantly more drug use and delinquent activity and were more likely to be male. Twenty-nine percent of youth with a boyfriend/girlfriend reported perpetrating physical aggression against their boyfriend/girlfriend. Parenting and peer variables were significant predictors of physical dating violence. However, gender moderated the association between parenting practices and physical dating violence, with parental monitoring inversely linked to dating violence for boys and parent support for nonaggression inversely linked to dating violence for girls. Parent support for aggression also moderated the association between peer deviancy and reported perpetration. Finally, gender moderated the interaction between peer deviancy and parent support for nonaggressive solutions. The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This study was funded by the National Institutes of Mental Health K01 MH67975 and by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC Cooperative agreements U81/CCU417759 (Duke University), U81/CCU517816 (University of Chicago-Illinois), U81/CCU417778 (University of Georgia), and U81/CCU317633 (Virginia Commonwealth University). The authors want to recognize the contributions of the originators of the Multisite Violence Prevention Project (MVPP). Without the collaborative work of this talented and dedicated team this project would not have been possible. The members of the MVPP project are listed here according to their original affiliation, with their current affiliation noted in parentheses. The MVPP (corporate author) includes Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta GA: Thomas R. Simon, PhD; Robin M. Ikeda, MD, MPH (National Center for Injury Prevention and Control; Emilie Phillips Smith, PhD (Penn State University); Le'Roy E. Reese, PhD (Morehouse School of Medicine); Duke University, Durham NC: David L. Rabiner, PhD; Shari Miller, PhD (RTI International); Donna-Marie Winn, PhD (University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill); Kenneth A. Dodge, PhD (Center for Child and Family Policy); Steven R. Asher, PhD (Department of Psychology); University of Georgia, Athens GA: Arthur M. Horne, PhD (Department of Counseling and Human Development Services); Pamela Orpinas, PhD (Department of Health Promotion and Behavior); Roy Martin, PhD (Dept. of Educational Psychology and Instructional Technology); William H. Quinn, PhD (Clemson University); University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago IL: Patrick H. Tolan, PhD; Deborah Gorman-Smith, PhD; David B. Henry, PhD; Franklin N. Gay, MPH, Michael Schoeny, PhD (all Institute for Juvenile Research, Department of Psychiatry); Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond VA: Albert D. Farrell, PhD; Aleta L. Meyer, PhD (National Institute on Drug Abuse); Terri N. Sullivan, PhD; Kevin W. Allison, PhD (all Department of Psychology).