Abstract

Domestic violence has become recognized as a serious social problem. While attitudes about domestic violence have been linked with the perpetration of violence, the growing literature uses inconsistent measures, lessening the opportunity for valid comparison across populations. The current study contributes to the literature by utilizing a standard measure of beliefs and perceptions about domestic violence for a sample of early adolescents and a sample of adult professionals. Comparison across samples creates a compelling argument for education to combat increased tolerance for violent behaviors among American youth.