​
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; Stephanie Benjamin, PhD, MPH; Myriam Forster, 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 and explored gender and ethnic differences in these associations.
 
Methods: Data were baseline survey responses from high school students (N=1,973). Multinomial regression models tested the association between alcohol use and TDV types and assessed gender and ethnic differences, adjusting for covariates.
 
Results: 52% of the sample was female, 31% identified as White, followed by Black (31%), Hispanic (22%), Multiracial (9%), and Asian/AI/AN (7%). 21% reported alcohol use, 8% experienced TDV victimization only, <1% were perpetrators, and 10% were involved in bidirectional TDV. Compared to students who do not use alcohol, those 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]). Black and Hispanic youth were at greater risk of being victims compared to other ethnic groups (p = 0.01).
 
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 is essential to reduce disparities in the prevalence of TDV and its long-term consequences.