Date of Award

5-2023

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Psychology

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Goncy, Elizabeth

Second Advisor

Yaroslavsky, Ilya

Third Advisor

Poreh, Amir

Abstract

About 1 in 4 women and 1 in 10 men report experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) in their lifetime. For several decades, problematic alcohol use is a consistent predictor of IPV perpetration. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic transformed the romantic lives of people, it is crucial to investigate how it may have altered the prevalence of IPV perpetration and the link between IPV perpetration and problematic alcohol use. Among a sample of dating young adult couples, this study compared the IPV prevalence pre-COVID-19 pandemic (Wave 1) to during COVID-19 conditions (Wave 2). Furthermore, the study examined if problematic alcohol use moderates the relationship between IPV Wave 1 to Wave 2. Multilevel mixed model analyses revealed that there was no significant increase in IPV perpetration from Wave 1 to Wave 2. Additionally, problematic alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic did not moderate the relationship between IPV perpetration in Wave 1 and Wave 2. Since there was a low frequency of IPV across time in the sample, the findings suggest subsequent research of a larger population to observe if IPV prevalence changes in populations that are already experiencing a higher frequency of IPV. More research is needed in order to more effectively explore how significant the connection is between IPV and problematic alcohol use in the 'pandemic-like' unforeseen circumstances that call for higher resilience and coping skills that can be integrated into prevention programs.

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