Child Abuse, Substance Use and Dating Victimization in a Sample of Female Juvenile Delinquents

The relations among physical and sexual abuse, alcohol and drug use, and dating violence were investigated in a sample of female juvenile delinquents. Various reasons for drinking and their associations with frequency of alcohol use were also explored. Data used in the current investigation were obtained at a state correctional facility for female juveniles in Indiana. The results indicated that physical and sexual abuse were associated with dating victimization in this sample. Further, greater frequency of drug use was associated with having a greater number of abusive romantic partners after controlling for total number of partners. The reasons for drinking assessed in this study differentially predicted frequency of alcohol use. Race/ethnicity differences were detected for several of the variables under investigation and these results are compared to the findings of prior empirical studies. The implications of these findings for future research and for meeting the specific programming needs of female juvenile delinquents are discussed