Teen dating violence victimization and mental health in adulthood: The mediating roles of violence experiences and lifestyle factors

Adolescent dating violence victimization is a prevalent but often underexamined form of early relational trauma, with potential long-term consequences for mental health. This study investigates the longitudinal association between adolescent dating violence victimization and depressive symptoms in adulthood and explores the mediating roles of subsequent violence-related experiences and lifestyle factors. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we analyzed a sibling subsample (N = 1,474) followed through Waves I to V. Sibling fixed effects models were employed to account for unobserved family-level confounders. Mediation analyses using multivariate bootstrapping assessed the indirect effects of later violence involvement and health-related behaviors. Adolescent dating violence victimization was significantly associated with increased depressive symptoms in adulthood, even after controlling for shared family background. This relationship appeared stronger for males, though gender differences were not statistically significant. Mediation analyses revealed that violence-related experiences—particularly perpetration—and lifestyle factors—particularly sleep problems—partially explained the observed association, accounting for approximately 25 % of the total effect. These findings underscore the long-term mental health risks associated with exposure to dating violence in adolescence and highlight the importance of early, trauma-informed interventions. Addressing continued violence involvement and health-risk behaviors may help mitigate the enduring psychological consequences of adolescent dating violence victimization.