The Role of Gender in Adolescent Dating Abuse: An Interpretive Meta-Synthesis of the Qualitative Literature.

The role of gender has received considerable attention in the academic literature on intimate partner violence (IPV). The Grand Challenges for Social Work take a gender-neutral approach, without regard to the influence of gender on adolescent development and dating relationships. This positioning is inconsistent with gender mainstreaming approaches that have been integrated into international framings of IPV. The purpose of this article is to conduct a qualitative interpretive meta-synthesis to investigate how gender is represented in research on adolescent dating abuse across qualitative literature (N = 17 articles). Results underscore that gender influences the impact of abuse, with female adolescents more likely to be fearful in relationships, at higher risk for damage to their social standing, and more likely to be blamed for the abuse. Gender-specific attitudes affect perceptions of the seriousness of abuse, antecedents of abuse, and rationales for perpetrating violence. Findings across the studies indicate that adolescents have internalized gender scripts. Therefore, strategies to prevent dating abuse need to be cognizant of the socializing role of gender and the myriad ways it influences adolescents' lived experiences. Therefore, the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare should consider revising the language of the existing challenges to mainstream gender.

Trends in childhood violence and abuse exposure: evidence from 2 national surveys.

OBJECTIVE: To assess trends in children's exposure to abuse, violence, and crime victimizations. DESIGN: An analysis based on a comparison of 2 cross-sectional national telephone surveys using identical questions conducted in 2003 and 2008. SETTING: Telephone interview. PARTICIPANTS: Experiences of children aged 2 to 17 years (2030 children in 2003 and 4046 children in 2008) were assessed through interviews with their caretakers and the children themselves. Outcome Measure Responses to the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire. RESULTS: Several types of child victimization were reported significantly less often in 2008 than in 2003: physical assaults, sexual assaults, and peer and sibling victimizations, including physical bullying. There were also significant declines in psychological and emotional abuse by caregivers, exposure to community violence, and the crime of theft. Physical abuse and neglect by caregivers did not decline, and witnessing the abuse of a sibling increased. CONCLUSION: The declines apparent in this analysis parallel evidence from other sources, including police data, child welfare data, and the National Crime Victimization Survey, suggesting reductions in various types of childhood victimization in recent years.