Health Behavior in Adolescent Women Reporting and not Reporting Intimate Partner Violence

Objective To determine similarities and differences between adolescent women reporting intimate partner violence (IPV) and/or forced sexual intercourse (FSI) and those not reporting these experiences on a series of health-enhancing and health-compromising behaviors. Design and Setting Secondary analysis of the 2001 Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted in high schools throughout the United States. Participants One thousand six hundred and eight female students among whom 450 reported no IPV or FSI, 457 reported IPV, 473 reported FSI, and 228 reported experiencing IPV and FSI. Methods Descriptive statistics and discriminant function analysis. Results Statistical analyses revealed that the groups of adolescent women experiencing IPV and FSI were more alike than disparate, so groups were combined for further analysis. Results reveal that adolescent women reporting IPV and FSI are more likely to participate in health-compromising behaviors and less likely to participate in health-enhancing behaviors. Conclusion Adolescent women reporting either IPV or forced sex are more likely to be engaging in risky behaviors and less likely to be engaged in health-enhancing behaviors. These findings have important implications for health care professionals who care for adolescent women.