An expert weighs in on teen dating violence | Forensic Files

um when we do a survey of Youth that are in school in high school in Boston we find that fully a quarter of our young
people in high school a quarter one in four have experienced an abusive relationship and I don't think this is
even an urban problem across this country one in four one in five one in six young people um are self-reporting
um that they've been in relationships that are not healthy one thing that I know that's very different from like
when I came up is my life wasn't on Facebook my life wasn't in tweets uh there was no social media so you can
imagine that now on top of the emotions you're feeling around the breakup yourself you have to worry about what
the perception is in your peer group or even greater than your peer group it has
become so public um and I think that's added a a level of stress that um we frankly as adults haven't had to deal
with and we really need to make sure that young people understand how to set these boundaries around their digital
lives what are the strategies you use when someone who you don't know well um and who you may not like and who may not
like you uh now goes and does a posting about your relationship with so and so and young people are really looking for
what would be the strategy for handling that situation I think it's almost easier to sort of explain like how do
you get into a good relationship then how do you exit a relationship that stopped working it's very hard to break
up um in a way that leaves you very intact but doesn't destroy the person you're leaving you know it is a genuine
health issue um because both physical and emotional abuse leads to things like depression uh drug use missing school um
and illness and the Cornerstone of building peace in our neighborhoods it's not law enforcement it's not going to be
the courts it's not going to be probation it's going to be people understanding how to build a healthy
relationship how to manage their emotions and how to address conflict I think there are a lot of young people
who want to know how they can love somebody fully and be love fully in a way that lets them keep their identity
and keep their respect you know you have an opportunity when people are young to
give them the skills that they need to manage their emotions and their relationships and if you don't make use
of that opportunity really shame on all of us

Boston Public Health Commission Executive Director Barbara Ferrer talks about what parents need to know about teen dating abuse, the impact of social media, and the importance of healthy dating relationships.

Brief Summary

One in four Boston high schoolers face abusive relationships; social media complicates breakups, highlighting the need for emotional management skills.

Key points

Youth Relationship Abuse Statistics. A quarter of high school students report experiencing abusive relationships.
The Impact of Social Media. Social media adds stress to young people's relationship dynamics.
Building Healthy Relationships. Teaching young people to manage emotions and relationships is crucial.

Episode highlights

The Impact of Social MediaSocial media adds stress to young people's relationship dynamics.“It has become so public, adding a level of stress.”0:50Oct 27, 2013

Episode quotes

One in four young people have experienced an abusive relationship.

Statistics on youth relationships

0:03WatchOct 27, 2013

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