Testing an Extension of the I3 Theory to Teen Dating Violence Perpetration: A Latent Profile Analysis

Teen dating violence (TDV) is the perpetration of harmful physical or non-physical violence against a dating partner in an adolescent dating relationship. This study tests an extension of the I3 theory (Finkel, 2007) of intimate partner violence, to TDV perpetration. This study uses latent profile analysis to examine patterns in its sample’s levels of factors included in the I3 theory: anger, depressive symptoms, impulsivity, and alcohol use. This study analyzed the longitudinal relationship between profile membership and frequency of TDV perpetration of different types. None of the profiles were associated with frequent TDV perpetration at baseline or one year later. However, the profile with a high mean of recent alcohol use was the profile associated with the most frequent perpetration of most types across time. The results were both in support and in contrast to the extension of the I3 theory to TDV perpetration and therefore, warrant future study.Bachelor of Arts in Educatio