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The Effects of the Evidence-Based Safe Dates Dating Abuse Prevention Program on Other Youth Violence Outcomes

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Abstract

In response to recent calls for programs that can prevent multiple types of youth violence, the current study examined whether Safe Dates, an evidence-based dating violence prevention program, was effective in preventing other forms of youth violence. Using data from the original Safe Dates randomized controlled trial, this study examined (1) the effectiveness of Safe Dates in preventing peer violence victimization and perpetration and school weapon carrying 1 year after the intervention phase was completed and (2) moderation of program effects by the sex or race/ethnicity of the adolescent. Ninety percent (n = 1,690) of the eighth and ninth graders who completed baseline questionnaires completed the 1-year follow-up assessment. The sample was 51 % female and 26 % minority (of whom 69 % was black and 31 % was of another minority race/ethnicity). There were no baseline treatment group differences in violence outcomes. Treatment condition was significantly associated with peer violence victimization and school weapon carrying at follow-up; there was 12 % less victimization and 31 % less weapon carrying among those exposed to Safe Dates than those among controls. Treatment condition was significantly associated with perpetration among the minority but not among white adolescents; there was 23 % less violence perpetration among minority adolescents exposed to Safe Dates than that among controls. The observed effect sizes were comparable with those of other universal school-based youth violence prevention programs. Implementing Safe Dates may be an efficient way of preventing multiple types of youth violence.

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cooperative Agreement Number U81/CCU409964 and an intergovernmental personnel agreement (IPA) agreement between Dr. Foshee and the CDC (13IPA1303570) and between Dr. McNaughton Reyes and the CDC (13IPA130569). This study was reviewed and approved by the University of North Carolina, School of Public Health, Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects. Active parental consent and adolescent assent were obtained from all study adolescents.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599-7400, USA

    Vangie A. Foshee, Luz McNaughton Reyes & Christine B. Agnew-Brune

  2. Division of Violence Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Thomas R. Simon, Kevin J. Vagi & Rosalyn D. Lee

  3. Department of Biostatistics, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Chiravath Suchindran

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  1. Vangie A. Foshee
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  2. Luz McNaughton Reyes
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  3. Christine B. Agnew-Brune
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  4. Thomas R. Simon
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  5. Kevin J. Vagi
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  6. Rosalyn D. Lee
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  7. Chiravath Suchindran
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Correspondence to Vangie A. Foshee.

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The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Foshee, V.A., Reyes, L.M., Agnew-Brune, C.B. et al. The Effects of the Evidence-Based Safe Dates Dating Abuse Prevention Program on Other Youth Violence Outcomes. Prev Sci 15, 907–916 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-014-0472-4

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