Assistant Professor Jordan Davis sheds light on the complex connection between substance use, social-emotional skills and sexual violence among teenagers.

While teen substance abuse is at its lowest rate in over two decades, the use of alcohol and prescription drugs among teenagers is still a widespread problem. In fact, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), prescription drug abuse represents the fastest growing category of drug abuse in the U.S.

This substance abuse can have devastating consequences: new research led by Jordan Davis, assistant professor in the Department of Children, Youth and Families, reveals connections between the use of alcohol and prescription drugs and rates of violence among teens. In recognition of both Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Youth Drug Prevention Month, we spoke with Davis about how teen prescription drug use can increase rates of sexual violence, and the surprising role that empathy plays in bucking this trend.

Prescription Drugs: the Distinguishing Factor

Sadly, among victims of sexual violence, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner, some 23 percent of women and 14 percent of men first experienced violence by that partner before the age of 18. A recent study co-authored by Davis revealed that in many cases, teen dating violence and sexual violence are linked to substance abuse.

“We collected data on nearly 2,000 high school youth, tracking alcohol consumption and prescription drug use throughout their first and second years of high school,” said Davis.

From this data, the research team created three separate “classes,” grouping together youth who report similar behavioral patterns. 14 percent of those surveyed reported fairly heavy use of both alcohol and prescription drugs, about 45 percent reported using only alcohol and 41 percent reported using neither alcohol or prescription drugs. The data was then analyzed to determine how substance use related to the risk of being subject to or a perpetrator of sexual or interpartner dating violence.

The longitudinal results reveal that youth who were in the class of both alcohol and prescription drug use were 10 percent more likely to be a victim and 16 percent more likely to be a perpetrator of sexual assault in comparison with those who were only alcohol users. “This tells us that prescription drugs exert a significant force in affecting the behavior of users,” Davis said.

According to Davis, pinpointing the causes of non-sexual dating violence—which can include physical, emotional, verbal or relational abuse—is more difficult. However, among those youth who used both alcohol and prescription drugs, all forms of dating violence occurred at a higher rate. While Davis acknowledges that youth dating violence is a complex, multifaceted issue, he does believe that teens who are prone to violent behavior might be more likely to develop substance abuse issues, rather than acting violently becauseof the drugs.

The Critical Roles of Empathy and Parental Monitoring

Another study co-authored by Davis explored the trajectories of youth who did and did not engage in sexual violence in high school. Following a group of students from early middle school through their second or third year of high school, researchers collected data on the protective factors—conditions that help people effectively deal with stressors and risks—of empathy, parental monitoring, social support and school belonging to draw connections between these factors and teenagers’ risk of engaging in or falling victim to sexual violence.

Youth who were never involved in sexual violence tended to have better access to all four protective factors than their peers who did engage in sexual violence. However, according to Davis, two protective factors proved more important than the others: youth who never engaged in sexual violence exhibited higher rates of empathy and experienced higher levels of parental monitoring throughout both middle school and high school.

“Throughout adolescence, parental monitoring naturally declines as youth gain more agency and self-awareness,” said Davis. “However, parental monitoring still plays a critical role in influencing the mental health of youth and puts them at lower risk for committing and being subject to sexual violence.”

Prevention Methods to Minimize Teen Substance Use and Violence

When it comes to fostering these important protective factors, Davis emphasized the importance of early intervention: “The youth who started with lower protective factor scores—especially in empathy and parental monitoring—never really had the chance to catch up. The gap only widened between them and their peers over time.”

For this reason, Davis believes the most effective prevention methods should encourage parental involvement and focus on fostering empathy from a young age. “For youth who start with lower protective factor scores, evening the playing field must start in early adolescence with the primary goals of improving social-emotional skills and increasing parental monitoring.”