COVID-19-Related Lockdowns and Teen Dating Violence Prevalence Across Gender, Race, and Sex of Sexual Partners

Research has identified increased rates of intimate partner violence (IPV) as a damaging aftereffect of COVID-19 lockdowns. While this association has been well documented in adult populations, there has been minimal research examining potential shifts in rates of teen dating violence (TDV) across the pandemic period. Members of historically minoritized groups are at particular risk for IPV victimization and perpetration. Further, some of these groups have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, which may lead to additional increased risk. As such, an intersectional lens is necessary to adequately investigate pandemic-related changes in TDV rates. To explore these potential relations, we examined rates of TDV before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, across a nationally representative population. The current study utilized data from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, a nationwide survey of health risk behaviors experienced by students in grades 9 to 12 in the United States. Pairwise t-tests were used to identify demographic differences among outcomes. Change in prevalence of outcomes across years was assessed by using absolute and relative measures of association overall and by demographic sub-groups. We found that while teen dating rates significantly decreased, rates of both physical and sexual TDV increased with sexual TDV rising significantly. In analyses by subgroup, we found significant rises in sexual TDV for females, whites, and adolescents reporting opposite-sex sexual contacts. Non-significant rises in sexual TDV rates were noted for males and Hispanics/Latinos. We also observed significantly elevated rates among students reporting both-sex sexual contacts, although rates did not change significantly between timepoints. Our findings suggest that the pandemic's impact on teen behaviors has been complex, with differential effects across different demographic groups. These results highlight the importance of ongoing tracking of TDV rates, especially during global crises, in order to better protect and support at-risk youth.