Dating Violence

Dating violence has been defined as violence within an intimate or romantic dating relationship involving power and control of one partner over the other. This definition has changed over time, even within the social science literature. For example, although early definitions focused primarily or solely on physical violence, more recent, nuanced definitions have also included violations across sexual, emotional, and other interpersonal behaviors. In fact, one of the most common findings of dating violence research involves controlling behaviors. These can include dominance, isolation, and abusive or aggressive emotional and verbal behaviors. Furthermore, the literature on dating violence reflects conceptual and empirical overlaps between this construct and the topics of sexual assault and domestic violence.

Although the definition of dating violence could be applied across the lifespan, ...