Dating Violence Victimization Among Asian American and Pacific Islander Youth in Hawai‘i

ABSTRACT Recent studies reported high levels of adolescent dating violence, which led federal agencies to define this area as a public health issue. Most studies fail to include Asian American or Pacific Islander youth in ways that provide for accurate analysis. The present study examined verbal and psychological dating violence victimization prevalences among 2 Asian American (Filipino, Japanese) and 2 Pacific Islander (Native Hawaiian, Samoan) adolescent groups. The results showed 58.3% reported experiencing emotional dating violence, with 43.7% affirming that they experienced insulting/verbal abuse and 43.3% reporting that they were victims of controlling behaviors. No significant differences were found for victimization rates and severity by gender. This study highlights the need for research to examine dating violence among this population.