Risk Factors in Adolescent Sexual Dating Violence: A Quantitative Analysis

Sexual violence in adolescent couples continues to be a public health and social justice problem today. This type of violence is related to aggressive and violent childhood experiences, such as sexual abuse and battering. In contrast, family monitoring and religious practice are considered protective factors against violence. The general objective of the present study is to determine predictors and protective factors of sexual violence in adolescent couples. Two scales were applied to a sample of 453 adolescents between 13 and 19 years of age, one of sexual violence victimization and the other of perpetration. Complementing the scales, questions were asked about parental monitoring, religious practice, and the possibility of having suffered sexual abuse in childhood. Significant differences were found in the experience of sexual violence, with women recognizing greater victimization and men greater perpetration. On the other hand, having been sexually abused and beaten in childhood predicted the perpetration of sexual violence by young men toward their partners. In contrast, having been beaten or sexually abused in childhood did not predict sexual violence victimization in adolescence. That is, adolescents who were sexually abused or beaten in childhood were less likely to be victims in adolescence and young adulthood. In this study, parental monitoring and religious practice did not yield statistically significant results, so they were not considered protective factors against violence. The findings underscore the necessity for lifelong learning programs that restructure gender schemas and promote equality within the school environment, acting as preventive mechanisms against the consequences of early trauma on intimate partner violence.