Implementing Dating Violence Prevention Programs with Flexibility, Fidelity, and Sensitivity to Diversity: Lessons Learned from Expect Respect

• NCJ Number: 232159
• Journal: Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment and Trauma Volume: 19 Issue: 6 Dated: September 2010 Pages: 661-680
• Author(s): Patricia K. Kerig; Angela R. Volz; Melissa Arnzen Moeddel; Raven E. Cuellar
• Date Published: September 2010
• Length: 20 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Instructional Material
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article reviews how various dating violence prevention programs have addressed aspects of diversity and suggests how future dating violence prevention efforts could be strengthened by increasing flexibility and creativity while maintaining program integrity and fidelity.

Abstract

Communities increasingly are recognizing that intimate partner violence is a significant risk to the mental and physical health of adolescents. In response to this concern, a number of manualized adolescent dating violence prevention programs have been developed and disseminated. Although many of these programs have received empirical support, reviews of the dating violence prevention literature reveal a number of shortcomings of these efforts, particularly an absence of attention to issues of diversity. The authors discuss how the effectiveness of dating violence prevention programs can be enhanced by increasing their attention to issues of diversity among participants, including the dimensions of ethnicity, gender, social class, culture, developmental level, and the unique needs of at-risk youth. Using examples from their own experience in implementing the Expect Respect program, the authors propose practical strategies to increase the flexibility, creativity, and adaptability of dating violence prevention efforts. References (Published Abstract)