Experiences of Dating Violence and Help-seeking Behaviour Among Japanese First-year University Students

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health problem worldwide regardless of social, economic, religious, or cultural background. In Japan, prevalence of reports of IPV is relatively low compared with other countries. This study examined the experiences of victimisation in IPV and help-seeking behaviour among Japanese first-year university students using a cross-sectional design. Participants completed a self-administered anonymous questionnaire including 25 scenarios related to victimisation of harassment and/or violence from their boy/girlfriend. A total of 371 responses were used for analysis. Among the respondents, 148 (60.2%) male and 81 (64.8%) female respondents had experience of having a boy/girlfriend (χ²＝0.754, df＝1, p＝0.385). Among those with experience of having a boy/girlfriend, 69 (46.6%) males and 49 (60.5%) females had experiences of being harassed at least once by their boy/girlfriend. Female students were found to be more likely to have been harassed (χ²＝4.033, df＝1, p＝0.045). The most common form of harassment was ‘My boy/girlfriend has called me “ugly” or “a fool”’, which was experienced by 24 (16.2%) male and 26 (31.2%) female respondents. Among 115 who responded to the question regarding experiences of seeking help and/or consulting after receiving harassment, only 19 (16.5%) respondents had actually sought help/consultation. All 19 consulted with friends/acquaintances, and 4 also with their mothers. Nobody sought help with a professional/specialist regarding harassment and/or IPV. Among 11 respondents who had experiences of sexual relationships including kissing and sexual intercourse against their wish, only 4 had sought health, and all 4 had consulted their friends. In addition, only 4 respondents with experiences of sexual relationships against their wish had terminated their relationships. We suggest that gender and cultural sensitivity be considered when implementing an intervention for dating violence prevention and improving early help-seeking among the Japanese youth.