PREVENTING ABUSE IN ADOLESCENT DATING RELATIONSHIP

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The proposed research is designed to modify, refine, and pilot an intervention to reduce abuse within the context of adolescent romantic relationships. This research is comprised of two phases. During Phase One we will complete the manualization of the intervention, meet with adolescents about the content of our existing manual, and conduct two pilot iterations of the intervention. During Phase Two we will conduct a comprehensive pilot of the intervention. Participants in this comprehensive pilot will be 400 adolescents (13 to 17, inclusive) recruited from community agencies in Houston, Texas and Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Adolescents will be randomly assigned either to the intervention or to a no-treatment control condition. The intervention will last for approximately 2 months, and will consist of 18 group meetings (8-10 adolescents/group). All adolescents will participate in an initial assessment and three follow-up assessments scheduled at two-month intervals. The assessments will include the measurement of abusive behavior in romantic relationships, beliefs about the use of physical aggression and other forms of abusive behavior in romantic relationships, interpersonal communication and problem-solving skills, beliefs about the use of violence in general, and general antisocial behavior. Assessment methods will include self-report, partner-report, and observational measures of behavior.