Peer-reviewed article
Relationship Between Violence Against Children and Dating Violence Patterns Among Brazilian Adolescents: A Latent Class Analysis
Cláudia Leite de Moraes, Daniela Porto Faus, Michael Eduardo Reichenheim, Márcia C. Castro, Stella Regina Taquette ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined how different types of violence experienced in childhood relate to patterns of dating violence among Brazilian adolescents aged around 15 years. The researchers surveyed 550 high school students in Rio de Janeiro and found that the impact of childhood violence on adolescent dating violence differs significantly between boys and girls. For girls, childhood sexual abuse strongly increased the risk of severe dating violence victimization, while for boys, emotional and physical abuse were associated with perpetrating dating violence. The findings suggest that prevention programs need to account for these gender differences and the specific types of childhood trauma.
Key points
- Among girls, childhood sexual abuse increased the likelihood of severe dating violence victimization by 5.72 times
- Among boys, childhood emotional abuse (OR: 1.65) and physical abuse (OR: 2.66) were associated with higher odds of dating violence perpetration
- Childhood emotional abuse increased boys' likelihood of experiencing multiple types of dating violence victimization by 5.97 times
- Childhood physical abuse increased boys' likelihood of severe dating violence victimization by 3.60 times
- The effects of childhood victimization on adolescent dating violence differ by sex, type of violence, and whether the adolescent is a perpetrator or victim
Limitations
This is a cross-sectional study, so it cannot establish causality or determine the temporal sequence of events. The study relies on self-reported data from adolescents in Rio de Janeiro, which may not be generalizable to other regions of Brazil or other countries.
Abstract
Abstract Studies examining the associations between violence against children (VAC) and patterns of adolescent dating violence (DV) perpetration and victimization using person-centered analytic approaches remain limited and have yielded inconsistent findings. This study addresses whether emotional, physical, and sexual violence against children (VAC) are risk factors for distinct patterns of adolescent dating violence (DV), considering adolescents’ gender and their roles as victims or perpetrators. This is a school based cross-sectional study that involved a stratified cluster sample of 550 s-year high school students from thirteen schools in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) was used to detect VAC, while DV was identified using the Brazilian version of the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory (CADRI). Latent Class Analysis (LCA) was used to identify classes of individuals based on their response patterns to the CADRI items. Multinomial regression analysis examined the relationships between VAC and DV patterns. Among girls, no single type of VAC increased the odds of belonging to the most severe perpetration class of DV. However, childhood sexual abuse increased fivefold (OR: 5.72; 95% CI: 2.51–13.06) the likelihood of belonging to the most severe DV victimization class. Among boys, childhood emotional (OR: 1.65; 95% CI: 1.65 - 16.57) and physical abuse (OR: 2.66; 95% CI: 1.01 - 7.05) were associated with higher odds of DV perpetration. Emotional VAC increased boys’ likelihood of belonging to the poly-victimization class (OR: 5.97; 95% CI: 1.95 - 18.30). Childhood physical abuse also increased their likelihood of belonging to severe class by more than three-fold (OR: 3.60; 95% CI: 1.80–7.21). The effects of childhood victimization on adolescent DV differ by sex, type of childhood violence, and whether the adolescent is a perpetrator or victim. These findings underscore the need for sex-specific and trauma-informed strategies to prevent dating violence during adolescence.