Abstract

The public is often surprised by the high prevalence of relationship violence. With more than 50% of adults experiencing some form of physical or psychological violence in their intimate relationships during their lifetime, IPV is a public health crisis that particularly affects marginalized communities (Breiding et al., 2015; Johns et al., 2019, 2020; Stockman et al., 2015). The variable results of perpetrator and victim treatments make prevention particularly important if it is effective (Anderson & Van Ee, 2018; Babcock et al., 2004; Cheng et al., 2021; Karakurt et al., 2019; Maguire, 2018; Stith, Rosen, et al., 2004; Stover et al., 2009). Thus, researchers are interested in developing empirically tested programs that reduce IPV (Jennings et al., 2017; Niolon et al., 2017). The current meta-analysis builds on the existing literature by analyzing the broad effectiveness of IPV primary prevention in adolescence and young adulthood while specifically analyzing the moderator of novel intervention methods (e.g., online, mobile app, or mailed interventions). Additional moderators included age; gender; at-risk populations; intervention type, whether focused on IPV or relationship health; setting, whether school or community; and length of the intervention. Looking at the included studies as a whole, the aggregate of the intervention outcomes indicates that there is a small but significant positive effect from primary prevention programs (d = 0.175, k = 47, p < 0.001). As broad categories, attitudes (d = 0.166, k = 29, p < 0.001), knowledge (d = 0.212, k = 12, p < 0.001), and behaviors (d = 0.160, k = 36, p < 0.001) had small, significant effect sizes. Taken together, IPV primary prevention programs were able to successfully address their targeted outcomes in these domains. There was not a significant difference between facilitated and self-directed prevention programs (dF = 0.177, k = 39, p < 0.001; dSD = 0.160, k= 8, p = 0.132; Q = 0.023, p = 0.878). These findings have important implications for IPV prevention strategies and interventions. Although the effect size is described as small, even small reductions in IPV can have a significant impact on behavior that impacts millions of people and is costly economically and socially. Future research should further explore self-directed programs and extend our work to LGBTQ+ populations.

Degree

PhD

College and Department

Family, Home, and Social Sciences; Psychology

Rights

https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2023-06-22

Document Type

Dissertation

Handle

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/etd12872

Keywords

intimate partner violence, primary prevention, meta-analysis

Language

english

Download

Share

COinS