It can occur in person or electronically and might occur between a current or former dating partner. Healthy relationship behaviors can have a positive effect on a teen’s emotional development.

Estimates of teen dating violence prevalence vary widely, because studies define and measure violence differently over different periods of time for different populations. The findings also showed that those who experienced some form of dating violence also had a higher prevalence of other health risks like drinking alcohol, using drugs or thinking about suicide.Future research should look at the frequency of violence in teen dating relationships and how that may harm teens' health, the researchers conclude.More girls reported perpetrating physical dating violence than boys (34 percent vs. In addition, 64 percent of girls and 45 percent of boys reported perpetrating verbal emotional abuse toward a dating partner. Nearly one in four girls and one in seven boys reported being victims of sexual coercion in a teen dating relationship. ​ NIJ-funded research has also examined the prevalence of dating violence among a national sample of Latino adolescents. Phone interviews were conducted with 1,525 Latino teens, ranging in age from 12 to 18, most of whom (76.1 percent) were born in the United States.