Performance-Enhancing Substance Use and Intimate Partner Violence: A Prospective Cohort Study

Area of Science:

• Social Sciences
• Public Health
• Criminology

Background:

• Performance-enhancing substance (PES) use, particularly anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS), is a growing concern.
• Previous research suggests a link between PES use and general interpersonal violence.
• The specific relationship between legal PES use, AAS use, and intimate partner violence (IPV) requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the cross-sectional and prospective associations between legal PES use and AAS use and IPV involvement.
• To determine if legal PES use and AAS use predict IPV victimization and perpetration over a seven-year period.
• To analyze data from a nationally representative prospective cohort study to understand these relationships.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N=12,288).
• Employed logistic regression analyses to assess associations between PES/AAS use at Wave III and IPV at Waves III and IV.
• Adjusted for relevant demographic and confounding variables in the analyses.

Main Results:

• Cross-sectionally, legal PES use and AAS use were associated with higher odds of IPV victimization and perpetration.
• Prospectively, AAS use (but not legal PES use) was significantly associated with increased odds of all measured IPV victimization variables.
• AAS use was also prospectively linked to higher odds of three IPV perpetration variables, including sexual IPV.

Conclusions:

• Anabolic-androgenic steroid use is a significant risk factor for intimate partner violence victimization and perpetration.
• Legal performance-enhancing substance use also shows associations with IPV, though less pronounced than AAS.
• Findings underscore the adverse social and interpersonal risks of PES use, highlighting the need for prevention and intervention efforts.