Wendy E. Ellis

A School-Based Program to Prevent Adolescent Dating Violence: A Cluster Randomized Trial

OBJECTIVE To determine whether an interactive curriculum that integrates dating violence prevention with lessons on healthy relationships, sexual health, and substance use reduces physical dating violence (PDV). DESIGN Cluster randomized trial with 2.5-year follow-up; prespecified subgroup analyses by sex. SETTING Grade 9 health classes. PARTICIPANTS A total of 1722 students aged 14-15 from 20 public schools (52.8% girls). Intervention A 21-lesson curriculum delivered during 28 hours by teachers with additional training in the dynamics of dating violence and healthy relationships. Dating violence prevention was integrated with core lessons about healthy relationships, sexual health, and substance use prevention using interactive exercises. Relationship skills to promote safer decision making with peers and dating partners were emphasized. Control schools targeted similar objectives without training or materials. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The primary outcome at 2.5 years was self-reported PDV during the previous year. Secondary outcomes were physical peer violence, substance use, and condom use. Analysis was by intention-to-treat. RESULTS The PDV was greater in control vs intervention students (9.8% vs 7.4%; adjusted odds ratio, 2.42; 95% confidence interval, 1.00-6.02; P = .05). A significant group x sex interaction effect indicated that the intervention effect was greater in boys (PDV: 7.1% in controls vs 2.7% in intervention students) than in girls (12.1% vs 11.9%). Main effects for secondary outcomes were not statistically significant; however, sex x group analyses showed a significant difference in condom use in sexually active boys who received the intervention (114 of 168; 67.9%) vs controls (65 of 111 [58.6%]) (P < .01). The cost of training and materials averaged CA

Observations of adolescent peer resistance skills following a classroom-based healthy relationship program: a post-intervention comparison.

16 per student. CONCLUSION The teaching of youths about healthy relationships as part of their required health curriculum reduced PDV and increased condom use 2.5 years later at a low per-student cost.

Shyness and Unsociability and Their Relations With Adjustment in Chinese and Canadian Children

This study examines peer resistance skills following a 21-lesson classroom-based intervention to build healthy relationships and decrease abusive and health-risk behaviors among adolescents. The Fourth R instructs students in positive relationship skills, such as negotiation and delay, for navigating challenging peer and dating scenarios. Observational data from 196 grade 9 students participating in a larger cluster randomized controlled trial were used to evaluate post-intervention acquisition of peer resistance skills. Pairs of students engaged in a role play paradigm with older student actors, where they were subjected to increasing pressure to comply with peer requests related to drugs and alcohol, bullying, and sexual behavior. Specific and global measures of change in peer resistance responses were obtained from two independent sets of observers, blinded to condition. Specific peer resistance responses (negotiation, delay, yielding to pressure, refusal, and compliance) were coded by research assistants; global peer resistance responses were rated by teachers from other schools (thinking / inquiry, application, communication, and perceived efficacy). Students who received the intervention were more likely to demonstrate negotiation skills and less likely to yield to negative pressure relative to controls. Intervention students were also more likely to use delay than controls; control girls were more likely to use refusal responses; the number of times students complied with peer requests did not differ. Teacher ratings demonstrated significant main effects favoring intervention youth on all measures. Program and research implications are highlighted.

Impact of a universal school-based violence prevention program on violent delinquency: Distinctive benefits for youth with maltreatment histories

The goal of this study was to examine relations between different forms of social withdrawal (shyness, unsociability) and indexes of adjustment in Chinese and Canadian children. Participants were fourth- to eighth-grade students in urban China (n = 787) and Canada (n = 1,033). Data on social withdrawal and adjustment were obtained from multiple sources, including peer nominations, child self-reports, teacher ratings, and school records. Multigroup tests indicated that relations between shyness and adjustment did not differ in Chinese and Canadian children. However, relations between unsociability and adjustment variables were significantly different across the countries, with unsociability more strongly associated with adjustment difficulties in China than in Canada. Results are discussed in terms of historical and cultural backgrounds related to values of group orientation and individuality.

Bullying Predicts Reported Dating Violence and Observed Qualities in Adolescent Dating Relationships

OBJECTIVE Child maltreatment constitutes a strong risk factor for violent delinquency in adolescence, with cumulative experiences of maltreatment creating increasingly greater risk. Our previous work demonstrated that a universal school-based violence prevention program could provide a protective impact for youth at risk for violent delinquency due to child maltreatment history. In this study we conducted a follow-up to determine if participation in a school-based violence prevention program in grade 9 continued to provide a buffering effect on engaging in acts of violent delinquency for maltreated youth, 2 years post-intervention. METHODS Secondary analyses were conducted using data from a cluster randomized controlled trial of a comprehensive school-based violence prevention program. Students (N=1,722; 52.8% female) from 20 schools participated in 21 75-min lessons in grade 9 health classes. Individual data (i.e., gender, child maltreatment experiences, and violent delinquency in grade 9) and school-level data (i.e., student perception of safety averaged across students in each school) were entered in a multilevel model to predict violent delinquency at the end of grade 11. RESULTS Individual- and school-level factors predicting violent delinquency in grade 11 replicated previous findings from grade 9: being male, experiencing child maltreatment, being violent in grade 9, and attending a school with a lower perceived sense of safety among the entire student body increased violent delinquency. The cross-level interaction of individual maltreatment history and school-level intervention was also replicated: in non-intervention schools, youth with more maltreatment in their background were increasingly likely to engage in violent delinquency. The strength of this relationship was significantly attenuated in intervention schools. CONCLUSIONS Follow-up findings are consistent with the buffering effect of the prevention program previously found post-intervention for the subsample of youth with maltreatment histories. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS A relative inexpensive school-based violence prevention program that has been shown to reduce dating violence among the whole student body also creates a protective effect for maltreated youth with respect to lowering their likelihood of engaging in violent delinquency.

Is It Good to Be Bad? A Longitudinal Analysis of Adolescent Popularity Motivations as a Predictor of Engagement in Relational Aggression and Risk Behaviors

The relationship between reported bullying, reported dating violence, and dating relationship quality measured through couple observations was examined. Given past research demonstrating similarity between peer and dating contexts, we expected that bullying would predict negative dating experiences. Participants with dating experience (n = 585; 238 males, Mage = 15.06) completed self-report assessments of bullying and dating violence perpetration and victimization. One month later, 44 opposite-sex dyads (Mage = 15.19) participated in behavioral observations. In 10-min sessions, couples were asked to rank and discuss areas of relationship conflict while being video-recorded. Qualities of the relationship were later coded by trained observers. Regression analysis revealed that bullying positively predicted dating violence perpetration and victimization. Self-reported bullying also predicted observations of lower relationship support and higher withdrawal. Age and gender interactions further qualified these findings. The bullying of boys, but not girls, was significantly related to dating violence perpetration. Age interactions showed that bullying was positively predictive of dating violence perpetration and victimization for older, but not younger adolescents. Positive affect was also negatively predicted by bullying, but only for girls. These findings add to the growing body of evidence that adolescents carry forward strategies learned in the peer context to their dating relationships.

Peers Over Parents? How Peer Relationships Influence Dating Violence

We examined the impact of adolescents’ popularity motivations on their involvement in relational aggression perpetration and victimization, heavy drinking, and antiauthority behavior, while also considering the role of teens’ perception of their own popularity and psychosocial adjustment. High school students (N = 986; 50% female; Mage = 14.98 years) completed a battery of self-report questionnaires survey in the fall and again, 6 months later. Regression analysis controlling for Time 1 scores confirmed that stronger motivations to achieve or maintain popularity predicted increases in relational aggression perpetration and victimization, and antiauthority behavior. Furthermore, self-reported popularity predicted increases in heavy drinking, but only when popularity motivations were high. Finally, more frequent heavy drinking predicted increases in self-reported popularity over time. Findings emphasize the potential value of addressing adolescents’ popularity motivations in attempts at reducing the aforementioned negative behaviors and associated risks.

Social sensitivity and social, school, and psychological adjustment among children across contexts.

Abstract Peer relationships are clearly implicated in extant findings on pathways to violent dating relationships. This chapter integrates theoretical and empirical research to delineate the role of peers in the development of adolescent dating abuse. Research suggests that dating relationships are built on the knowledge and skills used in peer relationships and patterns of interaction persist into new dating relationships. Furthermore, peer modeling, punishment, and reinforcement are major routes through which peer norms for violence are communicated. Peer bullying and aggression are consistently correlated with similar behaviors in the dating context, and the violent behaviors of friends are closely matched. While familial relationships remain significant predictors of youth outcomes, effects are sometimes indirect via qualities of adolescent peer relationships. Addressing the connections between contexts remains vital for understanding the etiology of adolescent dating violence. We suggest that prevention of dating violence should be designed with peer connections in mind. Furthermore, we highlight the necessity of expanding current research to include diverse methods of assessment and more information on subtypes of dating violence.

The impact of cyber dating abuse on self-esteem: The mediating role of emotional distress

This study examined relations of social sensitivity to social, school, and psychological adjustment in rural Chinese, urban Chinese, and Canadian children. Participants were 4th to 6th grade students (Mage = 11 years) in China (n = 593 and 443 for the rural and urban samples) and Canada (n = 325). A self-report measure of social sensitivity was developed for the study. In addition to data on social sensitivity, information on adjustment was obtained from multiple sources. The analyses revealed that social sensitivity was associated with positive adjustment in rural Chinese children but with adjustment problems in Canadian children. The relations were largely mixed and nonsignificant in urban Chinese children. These results indicate the role of context in defining the functional meaning of children’s social sensitivity.

Peer Group Status as a Moderator of Group Influence on Children’s Deviant, Aggressive, and Prosocial Behavior

This study examined how emotional distress mediated the relationship between cyber dating abuse and self-esteem. Participants were 155 undergraduate students (105 females; 50 males) ranging from 17 to 25 years old ( M = 19.38, SD = 1.65) with dating experience and a minimum relationship duration of 3 months. Self-report assessments of cyber dating abuse, self-esteem, and emotional distress from the relationship were completed. Mediation analysis using multiple regressions revealed a full mediation model. Cyber dating abuse predicted lowered self-esteem and greater emotional distress. However, when emotional distress was entered as a predictor of self-esteem, cyber dating abuse became non-significant, indicating full mediation. Early-onset of dating was also a risk factor for cyber dating abuse and emotional distress. Few gender differences were evident. These findings add to the growing body of evidence on the negative effects of cyber dating abuse and suggest that distressing emotional reactions may underlie the deleterious consequences of this form of abuse.