75: We've Lowered the Bar: Resources for Identifying Teen Dating Violence with Dee Dee Said

WARNING: This interview contains descriptions of violence and sex that are not suited for children below the age of 12. Please watch episode 74: "He Loves Me but He Hits Me: teen dating violence didn't stop her with Dee Dee Said" before
watching this episode. In that episode, Dee Dee shared her story of being in a
teen dating violent relationship. 

This episode is a valuable resource for any adult who lives with, teaches, mentors, or interacts with a tween through college aged young adult. 

Listed below are a few statistics taken from Dee Dee's book, "It Doesn't Start with a Punch: My Journey through an Abusive Teen Dating Relationship": 

* 24% of teens aged 16 to 18 said they feel pressured to have a boyfriend or girlfriend. * Data from the 2015 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey of 9th through 12th grade students found that 10% of females and 3% of males have experienced forced sex. 
* Approximately 1 in 3 adolescent girls will experience an abusive relationship. 
* A 2021 survey by Common Sense Media found that in 2019 teens spent almost 7.5 hours per day watching TV, movies, and online videos, playing video games, and visiting social media sites. (James Steer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, explained, "Children's screen time has wide-ranging implications for their social and emotional development, how they form relationships, how they identify themselves, and how they are exposed to hate speech." 
* A 2005 study by the Kaiser Family Foundation reported that 12 to 17 year olds who are heavy viewers of sexual content are twice as likely to initiate sexual intercourse over the next year as those that saw the least amount. 
* Pediatrician Dr. Todd Huffman stated, "The sexual content in much of the media today's teens attend to is frequent, glamorized, and consequence free." 
* The Congressional Public Health Summit in 2000 reported the following measurable effects of exposure to violent entertainment: more likely to view violence as an effective way of settling conflicts; can lead to emotional desensitization toward violence in real life; feeds a perception that the world is violent and mean; and may lead to real-life violence. 
* In the summer of 2009, of the songs on the top music charts: 69% referenced sex at least once; 49% contained sexual lyrics; 41% contained profanity; and 31% referenced drugs or alcohol. 
* Females who watch music videos are more likely to tolerate sexual harassment. 
* Boys who watch music videos begin to treat women as sex objects, which can lead to becoming sexually aggressive with them. 

To learn more, please visit Dee Dee Said's website at buildstrongfoundations.com.

Send me a COMMENT or QUESTION!

THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!

Have a comment about this episode? Click HERE and complete the form.