Relationship Violence Typologies and Condom Use in Young Adult Dating Relationships

Jennifer Manlove, Child Trends
Kate Welti, Child Trends
Quentin Karpilow, Child Trends

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is one dimension of romantic relationships that may influence condom use among young adults, yet few studies have investigated variation in condom use across types of IPV. This study incorporates latent class analysis of 8,600 Add Health dating relationships to identify typologies of IPV based on the severity, frequency, and directionality (partner- or respondent-initiated) of violence. We identified five violence typologies, with males more likely to report partner-dominant violence and females more likely to report respondent-dominant and reciprocal violence. Random-effects logistic regression analyses found that males and females who reported partner-dominant and reciprocal violence (but not respondent-dominant violence) had lower odds of condom use than nonviolent relationships, and we did not find interactions by gender. These findings, combined with the fact that one in five young adult dating relationships in our sample involved violence, highlight the importance of incorporating violence prevention into STI- and pregnancy-prevention programs.