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Gender and Ethnic Differences in the Association between Alcohol Use and Teen Dating Violence.

Rasmey Gomez, MPHc; Mikaela Rojas, MPHc; Stephanie Collins, MPHc; Kimberly Rogers; Myriam Forster, PhD, MPH; Stephanie Benjamin, PhD, MPH

Background: Teen dating violence (TDV), verbal, physical, and sexual, can increase risk for
mental health issues and risky relationship patterns in adulthood. However, despite the strong
association between alcohol use and TDV, research exploring gender and ethnic differences in
this relationship remains limited. This study examined the association between alcohol use and
TDV (e.g., victim only, perpetration only, and bidirectional) and explored gender and ethnic
differences in these associations.

Methods: Data were baseline survey responses from diverse high school students (N=1,973)
participating in a school-based study investigating developmental health outcomes. Multinomial
regression models tested the association between alcohol use and TDV types and assessed
gender and ethnic differences, adjusting for age, state, and resource security.  

Results: Approximately half (52%) of the sample was female and about one-third identified as
White (31%), followed by Black (31%), Hispanic (22%), Multiracial (9%), and Asian/AI/AN
(7%). Over 1 in 5 youth (21%) reported alcohol use, 8% experienced TDV victimization only,
<1% were perpetrators, with the majority (10%) involved in bidirectional TDV. Compared to
students who do not use alcohol, students who did had over three times the risk of being a victim
(RRR: 3.11, 95% CI: [1.79, 5.40]) and over two times the risk of being a victim-perpetrator
(RRR: 2.98, 95% CI: [1.80, 4.92]), adjusting for covariates. Across TDV groups, Black and
Hispanic youth were at greater risk of being victims compared to other ethnic groups (p = 0.01)
although there were no significant sex differences in the alcohol use and TDV association.

Conclusion: Our findings indicate that alcohol use during adolescence can double and triple the
risk for TDV involvement, especially among minority students. Developing culturally tailored
prevention materials that address the role of alcohol in TDV for youth is essential to reduce the
prevalence of TDV and its long-term consequences.
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