NCJ Number
175420
Date Published
1996
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This Canadian research provides estimates of the prevalence of woman abuse in elementary and high-school courtship, shows that female victimization in post-secondary school dating relationships has some roots in earlier types of courtship, and proposes several primary prevention strategies that may reduce the likelihood of young males becoming adult perpetrators.
Abstract
The information reported in this paper came from a Canadian national representative sample survey of community college and university students conducted in the autumn of 1992. Two questionnaires, one for men and another for women, were administered to 95 undergraduate classes across the country. The sample consisted of 3,142 people, including 1,835 women and 1,307 men. Woman abuse was defined as "any intentional physical, sexual, or psychological assault on a female by a male dating partner." The survey findings show that many men come to college or university with the full battery of ideology and behavior that underlies the abuse of women. This suggests the importance of preventing young boys from becoming abusive in adolescent heterosexual, intimate relationships. Elementary and high-school- based educational and awareness programs, such as videos, workshops, presentations, plays, and classroom discussions, are relevant prevention programs. These programs can assist in showing youth what love should be, may reduce the incidence and prevalence of woman abuse in courtship, help provide an atmosphere in which students show more respect for each other, reach a large audience, change attitudes, increase knowledge, and change behavioral intention. 17 references