August 23

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Teen Dating Violence Statistics (Eye Opening)

By Colette Murphy

August 23, 2020


Teen dating violence is something that has only received attention in the last two decades. Previous to that it was regarded as not so important and regions with a strong religious presence largely ignored any romantic interactions between teenagers and deemed them ridiculous. 

What has become apparent in recent years is that adult relationship and domestic violence has its roots grounded in unchecked teenage behavior. For this reason teenage dating violence has become an area of interest for researchers and in my opinion deserves a lot of attention.

Most quoted statistics:

  • Nearly 1.5 million high school students nationwide experience physical abuse from a dating partner in a single year.
  • 1 in 3 girls in the US is a victim of physical, emotional or verbal abuse from a dating partner, a figure that far exceeds rates of other types of youth violence.
  • Only 33% of teens who were in an abusive relationship ever told anyone about the abuse.
  • 81% of parents believe teen dating violence is not an issue or admit they don’t know if it’s an issue.
  • Teens who suffer dating abuse are subject to long-term consequences like alcoholism, eating disorders, promiscuity, thoughts of suicide, & violent behavior.
  • 50% of young people who experience rape or physical or sexual abuse will attempt to commit suicide.
  • Among male high school students who have experienced sexual and physical abuse by a dating partner, more than 1 in 4 have seriously contemplated suicide, and almost as many have attempted suicide.

Statistics relating to suicide:

  • Teens who suffer dating abuse are subject to long-term consequences like alcoholism, eating disorders, promiscuity, thoughts of suicide, & violent behavior.
  • 50% of young people who experience rape or physical or sexual abuse will attempt to commit suicide.
  • Among male high school students who have experienced sexual and physical abuse by a dating partner, more than 1 in 4 have seriously contemplated suicide, and almost as many have attempted suicide.
  • Among female high school students who have experienced sexual and physical abuse by a dating partner, nearly half have seriously contemplated suicide, and more than 1 in 4 have attempted suicide.

Statistics that show parental ignorance:

  • In a survey of parents, three in four parents say they have had a conversation with their teen about what it means to be in a healthy relationship –but 74 percent of sons and 66 percent of daughters said they have not had a conversation about dating abuse with a parent in the past year.
  • Though more than four in five parents (82 percent) feel confident that they could recognize the signs if their child was experiencing dating abuse, a majority of parents (58 percent) could not correctly identify all the warning signs of abuse.
  • In a survey with a representative sample of teens (ages 13-18), nearly half (42%) said their parents know nothing or very little about what they do online.
  • Of teens in an abusive relationships, fewer than one in three (32 percent) confide in their parents about their abusive relationship.
  • In a national on-line survey of parents with children 11-18 years old, nearly half (45%) had not discussed dating violence with their children in the past year. Reasons parents did not discuss dating violence with their children included they thought their children were too young to talk about it, they would not know what to say, and their children would learn about it through experience

Other worthy statistics:

  1. Nearly 1 in 11 female and approximately 1 in 15 male high school students report having experienced physical dating violence in the last year.
  2. About 1 in 9 female and 1 in 36 male high school students report having experienced sexual dating violence in the last year.
  3. 26% of women and 15% of men who were victims of contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime first experienced these or other forms of violence by that partner before age 18.
  4. The burden of TDV is not shared equally across all groups—sexual minority groups are disproportionately affected by all forms of violence, and some racial/ethnic minority groups are disproportionately affected by many types of violence.
  5. 1 in 10 high school students has been purposefully hit, slapped or physically hurt by a boyfriend or girlfriend.
  6. Roughly 1.5 million U.S. high school boys & girls admit to being hit or physically harmed in the last year by someone they are romantically involved with.
  7. 1 in 3 young people will be in an abusive or unhealthy relationship.
  8. 33% of adolescents in America are victim to sexual, physical, verbal, or emotional dating abuse.
  9. 1 in every 5 high school students report being physically and/or sexually abused by a dating partner. (Journal of the American Medical Association)
  10. 1 in every 5 students between the ages of 11 & 14 say their friends are victims of dating violence, almost half experience verbal abuse. (Futures Without Violence)
  11. 43% of reported cases of dating violence occurred in a school building or on school grounds. (Day One)
  12. 50% of 14-24-year-olds have experienced digital dating abuse. (Day One)
  13. Among adult victims of rape, physical violence and/or stalking by a dating partner, 22.4% of women & 15% of men first experience some form of partner violence between 11 & 17 years of age. (CDC)
  14. Teaching young people about healthy relationships & ways to avoid physical dating violence can reduce physical & sexual dating violence by 60%.
  15. More than half of women (69.5%) and men (53.6%) who have been physically or sexually abused, or stalked by a dating partner, first experienced abuse between the ages of 11-24.
  16. Of the 8.5% of middle school students who report having bullied a classmate, nearly 1 in 5 have been a victim of dating abuse.
  17. Nearly half of female and 1 in 4 male high school students who report experiencing sexual or physical abuse by a dating partner, have also been bullied electronically.
  18. Among female high school students who have experienced sexual and physical abuse by a dating partner, nearly half have seriously contemplated suicide, and more than 1 in 4 have attempted suicide.

I am sure this has been an eye opening experience read for you as it was for me while doing the research, overall I think this is a topic that deserves a lot more attention and focus. I believe that the root of a lot of adult relationship violence starts in the teenage years, I feel there needs to be a push for education in this sector.

Colette Murphy

About the author

Hi, my name is Collette, I was born, raised in New York where i still currently live. I am currently in my mid thirties and after changed career multiple times and struggling to find a passion I decided to leave the career based live behind and start an online community for like minded people. This community is a safe place for women and like minded men who want to steer clear of misogyny, sexism, degrading comments and racism. I hope you enjoy your stay.

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