HomeResearchCurrent ProjectsOther ActivitiesTeachingPeopleCVLinks

 



Dating Violence

I have been involved with two collaborative, multidisciplinary action-oriented teams conducting research related to dating violence: The Dating Violence Research Team and the Provincial Strategy Team for Dating Violence Prevention. Both teams have been affiliated with the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre for Family Violence Research.

Dating Violence Research Team

I was coordinator of the Dating Violence Research Team. A large number of academic, community, government, and student researchers were affiliated with the team over the years. The goal of the team was to identify and facilitate the implementation of effective strategies to prevent psychological, physical and sexual violence in adolescents’ dating relationships. The Dating Violence Research Team conducted both quantitative and qualitative research on dating violence among middle school and high school students. These studies aimed to determine New Brunswick adolescents’ experiences with and attitudes toward psychological, physical and sexual dating violence. In order to facilitate this research we first developed a series of scales assessing attitudes toward dating violence that were appropriate for youth. We published an article describing the development and validation of the English version of the Attitudes Towards Dating Violence Scales in the Journal of Family Violence.   Copies of the items contained in the scales, in both French and English can be found in the following report:  Publication Series of the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre.

Our first study was a large quantitative study in which we surveyed 1,700 anglophone and francophone students in grades 7, 9 and 11. The results showed that dating violence is a serious problem among New Brunswick teenagers. Overall, 29% of the girls and 13% of the boys reported that they had experienced psychological, physical and/or sexual dating violence that was upsetting to them. The results of this research have been published as part of the Publication Series of the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre.  In collaboration with Dr. Heather Sears, We found that 19% of the boys and 26% of the girls reported having used two or mroe forms of dating violence;Use of multiple forms of dating violence was associated with attitudes toward and experience of dating violence. These resutls were published in the Journal of Adolescence. We also found that 21% of  the boys and 23% of the girls reported having experienced all three forms of dating violence. More girls than boys were upset by their worst nonsexual and sexual dating violence experience.  Individual and environment characteristics were associated  with both girls' and boys' upset reactions to experiences of nonsexual and sexual dating violence. These results were published in the Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment, & Trauma.

In a second study we conducted focus groups with youth about their understanding of the nature, causes and consequences of dating violence. This study identified several themes. For example, we found that the students had difficulty determining where to draw the line between what they perceive as “normal” adolescent behaviour vs. violent behaviour. The students also identified a need for proactive strategies to help them learn the characteristics of good relationships. The results of this research have been published as part of the Publication Series of the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre. We have also published one journal article based on this work.  

The results of these two studies also formed the basis of dating violence prevention workshops developed and delivered by university students to anglophone and francophone middle school and high school students. These experiences were pulished in Understanding abuse: Partnering for change.

Provincial Strategy Team for Dating Violence Prevention

Ann Cameron, Ph.D. (Psychology) and I were coordinators of the Provincial Strategy Team for Dating Violence Prevention (PST), which we created in February of 2002 and completed its work in December 2006. The PST was a multidisciplinary, collaborative team of the Muriel McQueen Fergussen Centre for Family Violence Research, and was funded by grants from Status of Women Canada, the Canadian Women's Foundation, and the New Brunswick Shool Trustees' Fund, and the University of New Brunswick Work Study Program.  A number of graduate and undergraduate students have  been active members of the research team. The goal of the PST was to evaluate existing dating violence prevention programs in New Brunswick, and then use this information to develop a provincial strategy for dating violence prevention in New Brunswick. The major providers of dating violence programs in New Brunswick are also involved in this process through their membership in a Consultative Committee, which provides input into the evaluation process.

As part of its work, the PST, in coordination with the Consultation Committee: 1)developed a set of goals and objectives for dating violence prevention programs; 2)compiled an exhaustive sourcebook of tools for evaluating dating violence prevention programs; 3)conducted focus groups with youth about the goals and objectives of dating violence prevention programs; 4)developed an evaluation instrument; 5) implemented and analyzed the dating violence evaluation; and, 6) prepared a final report which contained eight major recommendations. A copy of the report, in French and English can be found at: http://www.unbf.ca/arts/CFVR/research.php. We also have a manuscript in preparation based on this work.


Publications Based on This Work

Price, E. L., Byers, E. S., & the Dating Violence Research Team. (1999). The Attitudes Towards Dating Violence Scales: Development and initial validation. Journal of Family Violence, 14, 351-375.

Price, E. L., Byers, E. S., Sears, H. A., Whelan, J. Saint-Pierre, M. & The Dating Violence Research Team (2000). Dating violence amongst students in grades 7, 9 and 11 in New Brunswick: A summary of two studies. Fredericton: The Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre for Family Violence Research, University of New Brunswick. Available at http://www.unbf.ca/arts/CFVR/Dating-Violence/pdf.

Byers, E. S., Sears H. A., & the Dating Violence Research Team (2001, March). Dating violence amongst New Brunswick Adolescents/La violence dans les fréquentations chez les adolescentes et les adolescents du Nouveau-Brunswick. JustResearch, 15-17. Ottawa: Department of Justice.

Byers, E. S., Sears, H. A. et l’Équipe de recherche sur la violence dans les fréquentations (2001). La violence dans les fréquentations chez les adolescentes et les adolescents du Nouveau-Brunswick. Novelles de l’AEFNB, le 27 avril, 11-13.

Byers, E. S. & Harrison, D. (2004). Building and maintaining collaborative action-oriented research teams. In M. L. Stirling, C. A. Cameron, N. Nason-Clark, & B. Miedema. Understanding abuse: Partnering for change, 23-52. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

Krista Byers-Heinlein, Jamie Hart, Tammy Harrison, Justin Matchett, E. Sandra Byers & The Dating Violence Research Team (2004). Passing the torch: students teaching students about dating violence. In M. L. Stirling, C. A. Cameron, N. Nason-Clark, & B. Miedema. Understanding abuse: Partnering for change, pp. 297-319. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

Sears, H.A., Byers, E. S., Whelan, J.J., & Saint-Pierre, M. (2006).  "If it hurts you, then it is not a joke":  Adolescents' ideas about girls and boys use  of abusive behavior in dating relationships.  Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 21, 1191-1207.

Cameron, C. A., Byers, E. S., Miller, S. A., McKay, S. L., St. Pierre, M., Glenn, S. & the Provincial Strategy Team for Dating Violence Prevention (2006). Dating Violence Prevention in New Brunswick. Report prepared for Status of Women Canada.  Available at http://www.unbf.ca/arts/CFVR/research.php.

Sears, H. A., Byers, E. S., & Price, E. L. (2007).  The co-occurrence of adolescent boys' and girls' use of psychologically, physically, and sexually abusive behaviors in their dating relationships. Journal of Adolescence, 30,487-504.

Sears, H. A., & Byers, E. S. (2010). Adolescent girls' and boys' experiences of psychologically, physically, and sexually agressive behaviors in their dating relationships: Co-occurrence and emotional reaction.
Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment and Trauma, 19, 517-539.

© 2004 Sandra Byers, Ph.D. All Rights Reserved.
Website Designed by Bunthivy Nou Design