Risk and protective factors for sexual aggression and dating violence: common themes and future directions

Abstract

The primary aims of this article are to expand on three themes from the conference articles on risk and protective factors for dating and sexual violence and to offer suggestions that can guide future research. The first theme is the co-occurrence of sexual and dating violence with other forms of violence and other campus health issues. A second topic is the value of prospective studies in revealing temporal patterns of victimization and perpetration. A third theme is the role of peer norms in violence among college students. Suggestions for translating these ideas into research and action are discussed and include the need for comprehensive prevention approaches, more longitudinal research spanning the years before, during, and after college, and the application of social media technology in our interventions strategies.

Keywords: co-occurrence; college students; dating violence; longitudinal; peer norms; sexual aggression; technology.