PUBLICATIONS

 

ADOLESCENT DATING VIOLENCE AND RISK BEHAVIOR

Wolfe, D.A., Crooks, C. V., Jaffe, P., Chiodo, D., Hughes, R., Ellis, W., Stitt, L., & Donner, A. (2009) A school-based program to prevent adolescent dating violence: a cluster randomized trial. Archives of Pediatric Adolescent Medicine, 163(8), 692-699.

Objective: To determine whether an interactive curriculum that integrates dating violence prevention with lessons on healthy relationships, sexual health, and substance use reduces physical dating violence (PDV). Design: Cluster randomized trial with 2.5-year followup; prespecified subgroup analyses by sex. Setting: Grade 9 health classes.
Participants: A total of 1722 students aged 14-15 from 20 public schools (52.8% girls). Intervention: A 21-lesson curriculum delivered during 28 hours by teachers with additional training in the dynamics of dating violence and healthy relationships. Dating violence prevention was integrated with core lessons about healthy relationships, sexual health, and substance use prevention using interactive exercises. Relationship skills to promote safer decision making with peers and dating partners were emphasized. Control schools targeted similar objectives without training or materials. Main Outcome Measures: The primary outcome at 2.5 years was self-reported PDV during the previous year. Secondary outcomes were physical peer violence, substance use, and condom use. Analysis was by intention to-treat. Results: The PDV was greater in control vs intervention students (9.8% vs 7.4%; adjusted odds ratio, 2.42; 95% confidence interval, 1.00-6.02; P=.05). A significant group_sex interaction effect indicated that the intervention effect was greater in boys (PDV: 7.1% in controls vs 2.7% in intervention students) than in girls (12.1% vs 11.9%). Main effects for secondary outcomes were not statistically significant; however, sex _ group analyses showed a significant difference in condom use in sexually active boys who received the intervention (114 of 168; 67.9%) vs controls (65 of 111 [58.6%]) (P_.01). The cost of training and materials averaged CA$16 per student. Conclusion: The teaching of youths about healthy relationships as part of their required health curriculum reduced PDV and increased condom use 2.5 years later at a low per-student cost.

Chiodo, D., Wolfe, D.A., Crooks, C.V., Hughes, R., & Jaffe, P. (2008). The impact of sexual harassment victimization by peers on subsequent adolescent victimization and adjustment: A longitudinal study. Journal of Adolescent Health.

Crooks, C. V., Wolfe, D. A., Hughes, R., Jaffe, P. J., & Chiodo, D. (2008). Development, evaluation and national implementation of a school-based program to reduce violence and related risk behaviors: Lessons from the Fourth R project. IPC Review, 2, 109-135. Online: www.prevention-crime.ca.

The Fourth R is a comprehensive school-based program aimed at reducing three interconnected risk behaviours in adolescence: violence (bullying, peer and dating violence), substance abuse, and unsafe sex. The program applies a youth-focused, harm-reduction strategy that encompasses knowledge, positive relationship skills, and decision-making. The foundation of the program is a 21-lesson curriculum that meets Ontario provincial education guidelines for grade 9 Health and Physical Education and is taught by classroom teachers. There are additional school-wide, teacher training, and parent information components. Expansion projects include extending the program to other grades and areas (e.g., Fourth R Grade 10 English Curriculum) and to specific groups of youth (i.e., Fourth R Aboriginal Perspective Curriculum). This article provides an overview of the development of the Fourth R and the best practice principles upon which it is based. Results of a 20 school Cluster Randomized Design are summarized to provide evidence of the efficacy of the Fourth R in producing gains in knowledge, skills, and attitudes among youth compared to youth who receive typical health class. Developed in Ontario, the Fourth R has now been implemented in more than 350 schools provincially, and has been adapted and implemented in six other Canadian provinces as part of a national dissemination strategy. The article presents the results of a survey of national partners that highlights factors that promote successful implementation and dissemination of the Fourth R, as well as potential barriers.

Wolfe, D. A., Crooks, C. C., Hughes, R., & Jaffe, P. J. (2008). The Fourth R: A school-based program to reduce violence and risk behaviors among youth. In D. Pepler & W. Craig (Eds), Understanding and addressing bullying: An international perspective (pp. 184-197). Bloomkington, IN: AuthorHouse.

Chiodo, D., Nowicki, E., Rodger, S., & Leschied, A.W. (2008).  Childhood predictors of adult criminality: A Meta-Analysis. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 50. 

Crooks, C.V., Goodall, G.R., Hughes, R., Baker. L.L., & Jaffe, P.G. (2007). Engaging men and boys in preventing violence against women: Application of a cognitive-behavioral model. Violence Against Women, 13, 217-239.

Crooks, C. V., Wolfe, D. A., &. Jaffe, P. G. (2007). School-based adolescent dating violence prevention: Enhancing effective practice with a gender strategic approach. In K. Kendall-Tackett & S. Giacomoni, Eds., Intimate Partner Violence (pp 16-2 – 16-18), Kingston, NJ: Civic Research Institute.

Wolfe, D. A. (2006). Preventing violence in relationships: Psychological science addressing complex social issues. Canadian Psychology, 47, 44-50.

This paper traces the development of a universal violence prevention initiative from its early roots in the dynamics of child abuse developmental psychopathology. My research has been devoted to preventing violence in relationships, including physical and sexual abuse of children, children who witness domestic violence, woman abuse, and dating violence in adolescence. A central theme throughout this work has been to integrate psychological knowledge about healthy, non-violent relationships with knowledge of risk factors for abuse and violence. As laws and public sentiment have challenged the generations-old status quo of family privacy and personal rights, psychology has risen to this challenge by studying aspects of abuse and violence in the lab, in analog situations, in the home, and in the clinic. This paper reflects how knowledge about the causes and consequences of violence in relationships is leading to promising educational and prevention initiatives such as the Fourth R, a universal school-based initiative aimed at early adolescence to reduce relationship violence and related risk behaviours.

Jouriles, E., Wolfe, D. A., Garrido, E., & McCarthy, A. (2006). Relationship violence. In D. A. Wolfe & E. J. Mash (Eds.), Behavioral and emotional disorders in adolescents: Nature, assessment, and treatment (pp. 621-641). New York: Guilford.

Wolfe, D. A., Rawana, J. S., & Chiodo, D. (2006). Abuse and trauma. In D. A. Wolfe & E. J. Mash (Eds.), Behavioral and emotional disorders in adolescents: Nature, assessment, and treatment (pp. 642-671) New York: Guilford.

Wolfe, D. A, & Mash, E. J. (2006). Behavioral and emotional problems in adolescents. In D. A. Wolfe & E. J. Mash (Eds.), Behavioral and emotional disorders in adolescents: Nature, assessment, and treatment (pp. 3-20). New York: Guilford.

Scott, K., Stewart, L., & Wolfe, D. A. (2006). Dating relationships among at-risk adolescents: An opportunity for resilience? In R. DeV. Peters, B. Leadbeater, & R. J. McMahon (Eds.), Resilience in children, families, and communities: Linking context to practice and policy (pp. 83-10). New York: Kluwer Academic.

Wolfe, D. A., Scott, K. S., & Crooks, C. (2005). Abuse and violence in adolescent girls’ dating relationships. In D. J. Bell, S. L., Foster, & E. J. Mash (Eds.), Handbook of behavioral and emotional problems in girls (pp. 381-414). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

Conceptualization of adolescent gender-based violence has been caught at the crossroads of the childhood peer aggression literature and the adult domestic violence literature. On the one hand, child peer aggression research recognizes female-perpetrated violence and “female types” of violence (Craig & Pepler, 1997; Olweus, 1991); on the other hand, the adult intimate relationship violence literature emphasizes a male-to-female, powerand control-based violence (Dobash & Dobash, 1992). In all likelihood, adolescent dating violence falls somewhere in the middle.

Wolfe, D. A. Wekerle, C., Scott, K., Straatman, A., & Grasley, C. (2004). Predicting abuse in adolescent dating relationships over one year: The role of child maltreatment and trauma. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 113, 406–415.

Three mediators of the relationship between childhood maltreatment and dating violence perpetration during mid-adolescence (i.e., trauma-related symptoms, attitudes justifying dating violence, and empathy and self-efficacy in dating relationships) were tested over 1 year with a sample of students from 10 high schools (N = 1,317). Trauma-related symptoms had a significant cross-time effect on predicting incidents of dating violence for both boys and girls. Attitudes and empathy and self-efficacy did not predict dating violence over time, although they were correlated with such behavior at both time points. Child maltreatment is a distal risk factor for adolescent dating violence, and trauma-related symptoms act as a significant mediator of this relationship. The importance of longitudinal methodology that separates correlates from predictors is discussed.

Roberts, M. C., Arias, I., Lutzker, J. R., Walker, L. E. A., & Wolfe, D. A. (2004). Family health through injury and violence prevention at home. Psychology builds a healthy world: Opportunities for research and practice (pp. 77-104). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Jaffe, P., Wolfe, D. A., Crooks, C., Hughes, R., & Baker, L. (2004). The Fourth R: Developing healthy relationships through school-based interventions. In P. Jaffe, L. Baker, & A. Cunningham (Eds.), Protecting children from domestic violence: Strategies for community intervention (pp. 200-218). New York: Guilford.

D. A. Wolfe, C. Wekerle, K. Scott, A. L. Straatman, C. Grasley and D. Reitzel-Jaffe (2003) Dating violence prevention with at-risk youth: a controlled outcome evaluation. J Consult Clin Psychol 71, 2p.279-91

This study evaluated a community-based intervention to help at-risk teens develop healthy, nonabusive relationships with dating partners. Participants were 158 14-16-year-olds with histories of child maltreatment who were randomly assigned to a preventive intervention group or a no-treatment control group. They completed measures of abuse and victimization with dating partners, emotional distress, and healthy relationship skills at bimonthly intervals when dating someone. Intervention consisted of education about healthy and abusive relationships, conflict resolution and communication skills, and social action activities. Growth curve analyses showed that intervention was effective in reducing incidents of physical and emotional abuse and symptoms of emotional distress over-time. Findings support involvement of youths in reducing the cycle of violence as they initiate dating in mid-adolescence.

Crooks, C.V. (2003). Media violence and its effect on aggression: Assessing the scientific evidence: A book review. Canadian Psychology, 44, 179-180.

K. L. Scott, D. A. Wolfe and C. Wekerle (2003) Maltreatment and trauma: tracking the connections in adolescence. Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am 12, 2p.211-30, viii

Posttraumatic stress disorder is one of the most common and often prolonged consequences of childhood maltreatment. In this article the authors consider theories of trauma continuity, with emphasis on a relational path to maladjustment that links childhood maltreatment to elevated trauma symptomatology and intimate victimization in adolescent dating relationships.

C. Wekerle, D. A. Wolfe, D. L. Hawkins, A. L. Pittman, A. Glickman and B. E. Lovald (2001) Childhood maltreatment, posttraumatic stress symptomatology, and adolescent dating violence: considering the value of adolescent perceptions of abuse and a trauma mediational model. Dev Psychopathol 13, 4p.847-71

The present study, utilizing both a child protective services and high school sample of midadolescents, examined the issue of self-report of maltreatment as it relates to issues of external validity (i.e., concordance with social worker ratings). reliability (i.e.. overlap with an alternate child maltreatment self-report inventory; association of a self-labeling item as "abused" with their subscale item counterparts), and construct validity (i.e., the association of maltreatment with posttraumatic stress symptomatology and dating violence). Relevant theoretical work in attachment, trauma, and relationship violence points to a mediational model, whereby the relationship between childhood maltreatment and adolescent dating violence would be expected to be accounted for by posttraumatic stress symptomatology. In the high school sample, 1329 adolescents and, in the CPS sample, 224 youth on the active caseloads completed comparable questionnaires in the three domains of interest. For females only, results supported a mediational model in the prediction of dating violence in both samples. For males, child maltreatment and trauma symptomatology added unique contributions to predicting dating violence. with no consistent pattern emerging across samples. When considering the issue of self-labeling as abused. CPS females who self-labeled had higher posttraumatic stress symptomatology and dating violence victimization scores than did their nonlabeling, maltreated counterparts for emotional maltreatment. These results point to the need for ongoing work in understanding the process of disclosure and how maltreatment experiences are consciously conceptualized.

D. A. Wolfe, K. Scott, C. Wekerle and A. L. Pittman (2001) Child maltreatment: risk of adjustment problems and dating violence in adolescence. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 40, 3p.282-9

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between child maltreatment, clinically relevant adjustment problems, and dating violence in a community sample of adolescents. METHOD: Adolescents from 10 high schools (N= 1,419; response rate = 62%) in southwestern Ontario completed questionnaires that assessed past maltreatment, current adjustment, and dating violence. Logistic regression was used to compare maltreated and nonmaltreated youths across outcome domains. RESULTS: One third (n = 462) of the school sample reported levels of maltreatment above the cutoff score on the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Girls with a history of maltreatment had a higher risk of emotional distress compared with girls without such histories (e.g., odds ratios [OR] for anger, depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress-related problems were 7.1, 7.2, 9.3, and 9.8, respectively). They were also at greater risk of violent and nonviolent delinquency (OR = 2.7) and carrying concealed weapons (OR = 7.1). Boys with histories of maltreatment were 2.5 to 3.5 times as likely to report clinical levels of depression, posttraumatic stress, and overt dissociation as were boys without a maltreatment history. They also had a significantly greater risk of using threatening behaviors (OR = 2.8) or physical abuse (OR = 3.4) against their dating partners. CONCLUSIONS: Maltreatment is a significant risk factor for adolescent maladjustment and shows a differential pattern for male and female adolescents.

D. A. Wolfe, K. Scott, D. Reitzel-Jaffe, C. Wekerle, C. Grasley and A. L. Straatman (2001) Development and validation of the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory. Psychol Assess 13, 2p.277-93

Four studies examined the Conflict in Adolescent Dating Relationships Inventory (CADRI), a measure of abusive behavior among adolescent dating partners. Exploratory factor analysis was used to refine items based on high school participants with dating experience (N = 393; 49% female). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to derive and cross-validate the factor structure with participants from 10 high schools (N = 1,019, 55% female; ages 14-16). The model structure fit for all grades and both sexes, with physical abuse, verbal abuse, and threatening behavior most representative of the underlying "abuse" factor. In Studies 3 and 4, the second-order abuse factor showed acceptable test-retest reliability, partner agreement, and correlation (significant for males only) between observer ratings of dating partners' interactions and youths' CADRI scores. Results support the CADRI as a measure of abusive behavior in adolescent dating relationships.

D. A. Wolfe and C. Feiring (2000) Dating violence through the lens of adolescent romantic relationships. Child Maltreat 5, 4p.360-3

C. Wekerle and D. A. Wolfe (1999) Dating violence in mid-adolescence: theory, significance, and emerging prevention initiatives. Clin Psychol Rev 19, 4p.435-56

Adolescent dating violence is an important juncture in the developmental pathway to adult partnership violence. As a window of opportunity for positive change, the present review considers the theoretical and empirical work on adolescent dating and dating violence. A consideration of the scope of the problem, developmental processes, and theoretical formulations precede a review of six relationship violence prevention programs designed for and delivered to youth. Five programs are school-based and one operates in the community. Prevention is targeted toward both universal (e.g., all high school students) and selected adolescent populations (e.g., youths with histories of maltreatment, or problems with peer aggression). Programs addressed specific skills and knowledge that oppose the use of violent and abusive behavior toward intimate partners; one program addressed interpersonal violence more generally, and was also included in this review because of its implications for dating violence initiatives. Positive changes were found across studies in violence-related attitudes and knowledge, also, positive gains were noted in self-reported perpetration of dating violence, with less consistent evidence in self-reported victimization. However, these findings should be considered preliminary due to limited follow-up and generalizability. Conceptual and methodological issues are discussed with a view toward improving assessment methods and research design.

D. A. Wolfe, C. Wekerle, D. Reitzel-Jaffe and L. Lefebvre (1998) Factors associated with abusive relationships among maltreated and nonmaltreated youth. Dev Psychopathol 10, 1p.61-85

This study sought to understand how experiences of maltreatment occurring prior to 12 years of age affect adolescent peer and dating relationships. A school-based sample of 15-year-olds was divided into maltreated (n = 132) and nonmaltreated (n = 227) subgroups based on self-reported maltreatment. These two groups were then compared on two theoretically determined dimensions of adjustment (i.e., interpersonal sensitivity/hostility; personal resourceS) and self- and teacher-report measures of peer and dating relationships. Findings supported the hypothesis that maltreated youths significantly differed from nonmaltreated youths in terms of adjustment problems as well as conflict with dating partners and close friends. Maltreated youths reported significantly more verbal and physical abuse both toward and by their dating partners, and were seen by teachers as engaging in more acts of aggression and harassment toward others. In regression analyses, the significant association between maltreatment and dating conflict for males was strengthened by including adjustment dimensions in the equation; for females, adjustment variables mediated the association between maltreatment and dating conflict. Results are discussed in relation to a maladaptive interpersonal trajectory for maltreated children, wherein a violent interactional dynamic in adolescent close relationships may be setting the stage for violence in intimate partnerships.

C. Wekerle and D. A. Wolfe (1998) The role of child maltreatment and attachment style in adolescent relationship violence. Dev Psychopathol 10, 3p.571-86

Utilizing attachment theory as a basis for conceptualizing close relationships among adolescents, this study investigated two important relationship risk factors (child maltreatment, and adolescent self-perceived insecure attachment style) as predictors of "offender" and "victim" experiences in youth relationships. In addition to considering the influence of these risk factors, we further considered their interaction in predicting conflict in close relationships. Of interest was the extent to which attachment styles may function as a moderator of the relationship between childhood abuse and current abuse in teen close relationships. High school students (N = 321) in grades 9 and 10 completed questionnaires tapping their histories of maltreatment, currently viewed styles of attachment, and conflict in close relationships over the past 6 months. Maltreatment alone emerged as the most consistent predictor, accounting for 13-18% of the variance in male's physically, sexually, and verbally abusive behaviors; in contrast, it was not highly predictive of female's abusive behaviors. Maltreatment was predictive of victimization experiences for both males and females. Attachment style did not substantially add to the prediction of relationship conflict beyond maltreatment; however, avoidant attachment style emerged repeatedly as a significant predictor of female abusiveness and victimization. Attachment self-ratings were found to function as a moderator of child maltreatment in predicting primarily male coercive behavior towards a relationship partner as well as predicting male's experience of coercion from a partner. Thus, the presence of childhood maltreatment and adolescent self-perceived insecure attachment style applies predominantly to male youth. The implication of these gender differences for understanding relationship violence is discussed.

R. A. McGee, D. A. Wolfe and S. K. Wilson (1997) Multiple maltreatment experiences and adolescent behavior problems: adolescents' perspectives. Dev Psychopathol 9, 1p.131-49

By adolescence, appraisal of one's past life experience becomes critical to the stage-salient issue of identity formation. This study examined adolescents' perceptions of their maltreatment experiences. It scrutinized the combined and unique contribution of five maltreatment types (i.e., physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, neglect, and exposure to family violence) to variance in adolescent adjustment. It was predicted that these maltreatment types would account for significant variance in adjustment when controlling for the context variables of age, sex, socioeconomic status, IQ, and stressful life events. Adolescents (N = 160, aged 11-17) were randomly selected from the open caseload of a child protection agency. Participants completed global severity ratings regarding their experiences of the five types of maltreatment, as well as a battery of measures assessing self- and caretaker-reported externalizing and internalizing symptomatology. The youths' maltreatment ratings significantly predicted self-reported adjustment, even when controlling for all context variables. Psychological maltreatment was the most predictively potent maltreatment type, and enhanced the predictive utility of other maltreatment types. Significant sex differences in the sequelae of perceived maltreatment were evident. Also, interactions between youths' ratings and those obtained from CPS files were detected. The findings were consistent with recent research in child maltreatment, and contribute to our understanding of developmental psychopathology among adolescents.

P. G. Jaffe, M. Sudermann, D. Reitzel and S. M. Killip (1992) An evaluation of a secondary school primary prevention program on violence in intimate relationships. Violence Vict 7, 2p.129-46

A large-scale primary prevention program for wife assault and dating violence was evaluated, employing a measure of attitudes, by means of the London Family Court Clinic Questionnaire on Violence in Relationships. The target audience comprised all students in four high schools. A brief intervention, including a large group presentation on wife assault and dating violence, followed by classroom discussion facilitated by community professionals was instituted. Attitudes, knowledge and behavioral intentions were assessed prior to intervention, immediately afterward, and at five to six weeks post-intervention, in a stratified classroom level random sample of the participants. Significant positive attitude, knowledge, and behavioral intention changes were found at posttest, and the majority of these were maintained at delayed follow-up. Striking sex differences were found, with females consistently showing better attitudes than males. A 'backlash' effect was noted among a small number of males after the intervention. It was hypothesized that this group may already be involved in abusive behavior and require secondary, rather than primary, prevention. Students reported a high level of awareness of and experience with violence in their own and their friends' dating and family relationships, and overwhelmingly endorsed primary prevention of relationship violence in the schools.