A longitudinal investigation of heavy drinking and physical dating violence in men and women

Examinations of heavy drinking and dating violence have typically focused on either female victimization or male perpetration; yet recent findings indicate that mutual aggression is the most common pattern of dating violence. The current study investigated the relation between heavy drinking and dating violence for both men and women. Participants (N = 2247) completed surveys that assessed their heavy drinking and dating violence frequency across the first three years of college. Findings indicated that heavy drinking and dating violence were both relatively stable across time for men and women, but the relation between heavy drinking and dating violence differed by gender. For men, heavy drinking and dating violence were concurrently associated during their freshman year (Year 1), whereas for women heavy drinking during their sophomore year (Year 2) predicted dating violence in their junior year (Year 3). In addition to providing educational material on healthy relationships and conflict resolution techniques, intervention efforts should target both heavy drinking and dating violence for men during or prior to their freshman year of college, whereas women may primarily benefit from efforts to reduce their heavy drinking.