A Brief Intervention to Prevent Adolescent Dating Aggression Perpetration

NCT02080923 | Completed DMC

• 2 other identifiers: H-315012013-VA-CX-0001
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 220
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The proposed study is a test of the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a brief motivational interview style intervention. The intervention will take place in the pediatric emergency department of the Boston University Medical Center by a trained interventionist and will follow an intervention manual developed by a team of dating abuse and brief intervention experts. The study will involve two randomized groups of youth age 15-19: one group will receive the intervention and the other will not. The study will compare changes in data from baseline to 3- and 6-month follow-up for those in both groups. Outcomes including dating abused related knowledge, attitudes about the use of violence to resolve conflict, and dating abuse behavior (perpetration and/or victimization) will be assessed. The hypothesis of this study is that youth who receive the intervention will show improvements in dating abuse related knowledge, attitudes and behavior that are maintained for 6 months, while those in the control group will show no similar change.

Conditions

Offensive Aggression; Sexual Aggression; Dating Violence Perpetration and Victimization

Keywords

Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior; Age Factors; Courtship; Randomized Control Trial; Female; Male; Minority Groups/statistics & numerical data; Risk-Taking; Sex Factors; Sexual Behavior/statistics & numerical data; Substance-Related Disorders/epidemiology; Urban Population/statistics & numerical data; Violence/statistics & numerical data; Dating Violence; Dating Aggression; Perpetration

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Dating Aggression Perpetration

  Change in the perpetration of dating aggression from baseline to follow-up.

  3 months or 6 months

• Intentions to use physical violence during next partner conflict

  Change in the intention to use acts of physical violence during the next conflict with a dating partner

  3 months or 6 months

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Knowledge and Attitudes about Dating Aggression

  3 months or 6 months

Other Outcomes (1)

• Program Cost-effectiveness

  up to 18 months

Study Arms (2)

Brief Motivational Interview

EXPERIMENTAL

Health-related counseling that takes place in as little as one hour or up to a few sessions.

Behavioral: Brief Motivational Interview

Standard Care

NO INTERVENTION

Participant will receive information about dating abuse in a handout and referrals to a national domestic violence hotline.

Interventions

Brief Motivational Interview BEHAVIORAL

The intervention is exclusively focused on Adolescent Dating Aggression and will always be delivered by a human interventionist. It is theory-based and its success as an intervention method for substance abuse and several other health-related issues is well established.

Brief Motivational Interview

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 15 Years - 19 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• must be a patient of the Pediatric Emergency Department or adolescent outpatient center at the Boston University Medical Center
• must be 15-19 years old
• have used at least one form of physical or sexual aggression against a dating or sexual partner in the past three months
• English-speaking

You may not qualify if:

• patient's reason for visit to the healthcare center is an acute mental health problem
• patient is a prisoner or juvenile detainee
• patient is determined to be a potentially lethal dating abuse offender based on a lethality checklist
• patient has cognitive or psychiatric limitations that render him/her unable to complete the eligibility form independently
• currently attending a batterer intervention program
• receiving care for violent trauma victimization
• appears intoxicated or high on drugs at the time of eligibility screening, or has informed medical staff that they are

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Boston University: lead
• U.S. Department of Justice: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Boston University School of Public Health

Boston, Massachusetts, 02118, United States

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Rothman EF, Stuart GL, Heeren T, Paruk J, Bair-Merritt M. The Effects of a Health Care-Based Brief Intervention on Dating Abuse Perpetration: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial. Prev Sci. 2020 Apr;21(3):366-376. doi: 10.1007/s11121-019-01054-w.

  PMID: 31643025 DERIVED

Related Links

• Academic Profile

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Adolescent Behavior; Courtship; Risk-Taking; Sexual Behavior; Substance-Related Disorders

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior; Chemically-Induced Disorders; Mental Disorders

Study Officials

• Emily F Rothman, MS, ScD

  Boston University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: This is a brief motivational interview-style intervention. Adolescents ages 15-19 years old who visit the emergency department and screen positive for physical or sexual dating abuse perpetration participate in a \~45 minute brief intervention and receive up to three booster calls in the subsequent 6 weeks.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 4, 2014
• First Posted: March 7, 2014
• Study Start: April 1, 2014
• Primary Completion: June 13, 2017
• Study Completion: June 13, 2017
• Last Updated: June 21, 2017

Record last verified: 2017-06

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)