Assessing related factors of intention to perpetrate dating violence among university students using the theory of planned behavior

Dating violence (DV) is a major public health problem among youth. The majority of DV studies in Taiwan involve the assessment of DV without the use of a robust psychological framework to guide research accuracy. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to utilize the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to assess intention and other salient factors related to DV among university students. A two-phase, mixed-method design study was conducted among university students from seven universities in Taiwan, aged 18 to 24 years. In Phase I, questionnaires used were specifically developed based on the TPB, consisting of both direct and indirect measures related to DV. In Phase II, questionnaire evaluation and related factors were examined through a two-step process of structural equation modelling (SEM) to test the TPB model. The results of this study found that perceived behavioral control, subjective norm, and attitude toward DV on behavioral intention accounting for 37.5% of the total variance. Among the related factors, attitude toward the behavior was the strongest (β = 0.48, p < 0.001), followed by perceived behavioral control (β = 0.19, p < 0.05). Findings from this study could expand the knowledge base in this important area and might help prevent DV.