Are teenage boys more prone to dating violence as compared to teenage girls?
| Aug 31, 2018, 16:42 IST
A new study has found that when it comes to dating, teenage boys are more prone to violence as compared to teenage girls. In the past year, 5.8% of boys had said that they had experienced dating violence while up to 4.2% of girls said the same. “A lot of our interventions assume that the girl is always the victim, but these findings tell us that it isn’t always so,” said senior author Elizabeth Saewyc, Professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. “And relationship violence, be it physical, sexual or other forms, and regardless who the perpetrator is, is never okay,” Saewyc added.
“Young people who experience violence by their partners are more likely to act out and take unnecessary risks, and also can go into depression or think about or attempt suicide,” said first author Catherine Shaffer from the Simon Fraser University. “That’s why it’s good to see that decline in dating violence over a 10-year span. It suggests that healthy relationship programmes are making an impact among youth,” Shaffer added. The researchers further added that if parents, caregivers and school staff notified teenagers on what healthy relationships really are, they can protect them from violence in the future.
“Young people who experience violence by their partners are more likely to act out and take unnecessary risks, and also can go into depression or think about or attempt suicide,” said first author Catherine Shaffer from the Simon Fraser University. “That’s why it’s good to see that decline in dating violence over a 10-year span. It suggests that healthy relationship programmes are making an impact among youth,” Shaffer added. The researchers further added that if parents, caregivers and school staff notified teenagers on what healthy relationships really are, they can protect them from violence in the future.