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Scant research examined mechanisms underlying the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and dating violence (DV) perpetration. Using a cross-sectional design with 203 college women, we examined whether distress tolerance mediated the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and DV perpetration (i.e., psychological aggression and physical assault). Path analyses results revealed indirect effects of mindfulness facets nonjudging of inner experiences and nonreactivity to inner experiences on both psychological aggression and physical assault through distress tolerance. Mindfulness facets observing, describing, and acting with awareness were not linked to DV perpetration through distress tolerance. Results suggest that women who allow internal experiences to come and go without assigning criticism or avoidance are better able to tolerate transient distress and less likely to abuse a dating partner. Future research may examine distress tolerance and dispositional mindfulness facets as potential intervention targets for women who abuse dating partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditionally, most dating violence research has focused on physical aggression and has left stalking behaviors largely unexamined, despite evidence that stalking of an intimate partner occurs with high frequency. Moreover, the extent to which stalking victimization has the same negative mental health consequences as other forms of dating violence is unclear. Thus, using a sample of male and female undergraduate students in current dating relationships (N = 357), the association between stalking victimization and alcohol and drug use was explored. Results indicated that for both men and women, stalking victimization from a dating partner was related to alcohol and drug use, even after controlling for age, gender, length of dating relationship, and physical aggression victimization. These preliminary findings suggest that stalking victimization is associated with deleterious consequences; thus, additional research is needed to better understand the longitudinal, long-term consequences of stalking victimization. Additional implications and directions for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stalking is a form of dating violence that has typically been studied after relationship termination, despite evidence suggesting that stalking often occurs within current dating relationships. Consequently, there is a dearth of research on correlates of stalking perpetration among intact dating relationships. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to examine correlates of stalking perpetration among college men and women in intact dating relationships (N = 627) in order to identify possible risk factors for stalking perpetration. Using the dating violence literature and theoretical models for intimate partner violence perpetration as a guide, two potential correlates of stalking were examined: emotion regulation and anger management. Results demonstrated that anger management was positively correlated with stalking perpetration in men and women, and emotion regulation was also consistently correlated to stalking perpetration in women. Given that this is the first known study to examine correlates of stalking perpetration behaviors in dating college students, our findings provide a base from which additional investigations can be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objectives: Mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) promotes numerous psychological benefits, but few studies have identified for whom MBSR is most effective. The current study tested the hypothesis that lower baseline mindfulness invites more “room to grow” and, thus, predicts greater improvement during MBSR. Method: We examined three facets of mindfulness (awareness, acceptance, decentering) among 131 MBSR participants prior to enrollment, to test the hypothesis that lower baseline mindfulness predicts greater improvements in perceived stress, positive affect (PA), and negative affect (NA) following MBSR. Results: Lower acceptance and decentering predicted greater decreases in perceived stress. Higher awareness, acceptance, and decentering predicted greater increases in PA. Higher awareness predicted greater reductions in NA. Lower decentering predicted greater reductions in NA. Conclusion: Findings partly supported the hypothesis that lower baseline mindfulness predicts greater improvement following MBSR and emphasize the importance of assessing multiple mindfulness facets given their unique, contrasting relations to outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study sought to examine whether drinking motives (i.e., coping, social, conformity, and enhancement) moderated the relationship between physical, sexual, and psychological dating violence victimization and alcohol-related problems in a sample of drinking college women (N = 177). Results demonstrated that coping and social drinking motives moderated the relationship between sexual victimization and alcohol problems; conformity, social, and enhancement drinking motives moderated the relationship between alcohol-related problems and physical victimization; no significant findings were evident for psychological aggression victimization. Our results partially support the self-medication model of alcohol use, and this may be particularly relevant to sexual victimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has previously demonstrated that perceptions of peer's teen dating violence (TDV) is associated with one's own perpetration of TDV, although little research has examined whether this relationship is consistent across developmental time periods (i.e., mid-to-late adolescence). The present study examined whether changes in perceptions of peer's TDV predicted change in one's own perpetration of TDV in a sample of ethnically diverse adolescents from ages 15 to 18 (N = 1,042). Parallel process modeling demonstrated that decreases in perceptions of peer's TDV predicted decreases in TDV perpetration over time, and this relationship was more pronounced for males than females. These findings lend further support to the need for TDV prevention and intervention programs to include peer influence in their programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mindfulness gained increased attention as it relates to aggressive behavior, including dating violence. However, no known studies examined how the combined influences of dispositional mindfulness and perceived partner infidelity, a well-documented correlate of dating violence, relate to women’s dating violence perpetration. Using a sample of college women (N = 203), we examined the relationship between perceived partner infidelity and physical dating violence perpetration at varying levels of dispositional mindfulness, controlling for the influence of alcohol use. Results indicated perceived partner infidelity and dating violence perpetration were positively related for women with low and mean dispositional mindfulness, but not for women with high dispositional mindfulness. These results further support the applicability of mindfulness theory in the context of dating violence. Implications of the present findings provide preliminary support for mindfulness intervention in relationships characterized by infidelity concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a growing focus on identifying factors that underlie and maintain bulimic symptoms and substance use disorders (SUDs), as both are associated with high mortality and poor clinical outcomes. Experiential avoidance has been an area of interest within both the eating disorder and SUD fields, as it is a robust risk factor for both disorders. No known research has examined the relationship between experiential avoidance and bulimic symptoms in a SUD treatment-seeking sample. Moreover, the extant literature has focused exclusively on female samples. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship between bulimic symptoms and experiential avoidance within an understudied population: men in treatment for a SUD. Three separate hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to examine the following relationships: (1) experiential avoidance and bulimic symptoms; (2) experiential avoidance and alcohol use and problems; and (3) experiential avoidance and drug use and problems. Results demonstrated that, controlling for alcohol and drug use and problems, experiential avoidance was significantly associated with bulimic symptoms. Experiential avoidance was also significantly associated with alcohol use and problems and drug use and problems. These findings are preliminary and future research is needed to further examine this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teen dating violence (TDV) is a serious and prevalent public health problem. TDV is associated with a number of negative health consequences for victims and predicts violence in adult relationships. Thus, efforts should be devoted to the primary prevention of TDV. However, only a few studies have examined when the risk for the first occurrence of TDV is greatest. Continued research in this area would inform the timing of, as well as developmentally appropriate strategies for, TDV primary prevention efforts. The current study examined at which age(s) the risk for TDV perpetration onset was greatest. Utilizing a panel-based design, a sample of racially/ethnically diverse high school students (N=872; 56% female) from the Southwestern United States completed self-report surveys on physical and sexual TDV perpetration annually for six years (2010 to 2016). Findings suggested that the physical TDV risk of onset was at or before ages 15 to 16 for females and at or before age 18 for males. For sexual TDV perpetration, risk was similar for males and females during adolescence, before uniquely increasing for males, and not females in emerging adulthood. Findings highlight the need for TDV primary prevention programs to be implemented early in high school, and potentially in middle school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]