Analysis of risk factors associated with psychological, sexual and physical victimization among female university students in the context of their dating relationships
The extent of intimate partner violence, in terms of prevalence and the severity of the consequences that it engenders, justifies the necessity of better documenting the mechanisms and the risk factors associated with victimisation. The objective of the present study is to investigate the risk factors associated with psychological, sexual and physical victimization among young adult women with reference to the model elaborated by Riggs and O’Leary (1989, 1996) that suggests considering variables related to individual antecedents as well as variables associated with the context of the relationship. This study is part of the Quebec section of the International Dating Violence Study. The sample is comprised of 228 female students from various undergraduate programs of three major Quebec universities. Psychological, sexual and physical victimization is measured using the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (Straus, Hamby, Boney-McCoy, & Sugarman, 1996). The variables associated with individual antecedents (negligence, childhood sexual abuse, victim of violence and witness to violence in the family) and the variables associated with the context of the relationship (conflicts, communication problems, alcohol consumption) are evaluated using the Personal and Relationships Profile (Straus, Hamby, Boney-McCoy, & Sugarman, 1999). This study reveals that almost a third of the participants had experienced at least one incidence of sexual coercion and that one quarter had been victims of severe physical and psychological violence in the last 12 months. The results corroborate Riggs’s and O’Leary’s (1989, 1996) model, since the variables linked to individual antecedents and the contextual variables of the relationship were associated with the experience of violence in the context of a dating relationship. Logistical regression analyses reveal that the importance of each risk factor varies depending upon the type of violence sustained. The results are discussed in terms of their impact in the design of prevention programs.