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While there has been much empirical research on adult dating violence, only recently has research began to also focus on young adult dating violence in general and teen dating violence specifically. With recognition of the growing research and media attention toward youth and young adult dating violence, the current study provides a systematic review of the extant literature devoted toward examinations of dating/intimate partner violence among individuals aged 15 to 30 and, more narrowly, on the prior research that has tested the effectiveness of dating/intimate partner violence interventions with this age group. Results from a comprehensive literature search of a number of existing databases revealed 169 studies that met the inclusion criteria, and 42 of these 169 studies were also characterized as intervention studies. Descriptive results are discussed for the 169 studies overall, and for the 42 intervention studies in particular in greater detail. Evidence gleaned from this systematic review revealed a number of similarities and differences between the studies in general, but also pointed toward the potential effectiveness of interventions to prevent the occurrence and re-occurrence of dating/intimate partner violence. Study limitations and directions for future research are also discussed.

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A loglinear analysis of variables associated with self-mutilation behaviors of women with histories of child sexual abuse.

Ambiguities in Gottfredson andHirschi's general theory of crime have generated doubts about the explanatory scope of the theory and inconsistencies in the specifcation of models attempting to test it. In particular, the theory has been criticized for its inability to explain intimate violence; however, an empirical test of this criticism cannot be conducted appropriately unless the theoretical model has been adequately specified. This study tests four models of self-control theory for their ability to explain one form of intimate violence: courtship aggression. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the ability of measures of low self-control, opportunity, and perceptions of reward to predict the probability of courtship violence in a sample of 985 students currently involved in a dating relationship. The results indicate that while the main effects of low self-control, opportunity, and perception of immediate gratification are significant predictors of the probability of using violence in a dating relationship, it is less clear whether the functional form of the theoretical model accommodates the interaction between low self-control and either opportunity or perceived rewards.In 1990, Gottfredson and Hirschi advanced a "general theory of crime," a theory that posits that crime and other analogous behaviors can be explained by a lack of self-control stemming from ineffective parenting in early childhood. Since its publication, their work has stimulated a great deal of discussion in the criminological literature, much of which has been critical of the theory. The theory has been faulted for the tautological nature of its explanation (Akers, 1991;Tittle, 1991), its underdeveloped conceptualization of the role of opportunity and reward in the etiology of crime (Barlow, 1991; Grasmick et al., 1993;Tittle, 1995), and its glib portrayal of the nature of the behavior that the theory is designed to explain (Benson and Moore, 1992;Miller and Burack, 1993;Reed and Yeager, 1996). While the extant research on self-control theory has at least explored * I am indebted to John Cochran and Finn Esbensen for their invaluable suggestions and encouragement throughout the writing of this article. My thanks also to the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and recommendations. CRIMINOLOGY VOLUME 37 NUMBER 2 1999 375