Longitudinal Associations Between Exposure to Physical Interparental Violence and Dating Violence in Young Adulthood and the Moderating Role of Sex, Socioeconomic Status, and Antisociality

Abstract

Dating violence (DV) is a widespread problem that undermines the well-being of young adults. Consistent with social learning theory, exposure to interparental violence (IV) and childhood maltreatment have been identified as risk factors for DV perpetration and victimization. However, former research on these associations is mainly U.S.-based, cross-sectional, and focused on physical DV. To address these gaps in the literature, the aims of this study were twofold: first, to assess whether exposure to physical IV during childhood was associated with physical and psychological DV perpetration and victimization in young adulthood while controlling for childhood maltreatment; second, to determine whether the associations between IV and DV varied based on participants’ sex, socioeconomic status, and antisociality. To investigate this, data from a longitudinal, multi-informant, dual-cohort study in the Netherlands (TRracking Adolescents’ Individual Lives Survey) were used. Participants who self-reported their experiences of IV and whose romantic partners completed questionnaires on DV were included in the current sample (N = 522). Using hierarchical logistic regressions, results showed that IV exposure during childhood was not associated with DV perpetration or DV victimization during young adulthood. Further, this pattern of results did not vary as a function of sex, socioeconomic status, or antisociality. Overall, findings suggest that young adults in our sample demonstrate resilience against the intergenerational cycle of violence.