Educating about dating violence: The presentation of psychological abuse

On the micro level, psychological abuse is a subtly powerful means of controlling a dating partner. It is also an understudied component in dating violence research. Considering that education is a step toward affecting social change regarding dating violence, the purpose of this thesis is to explore the extent to which psychological abuse is problematized by educational manuals on dating violence. The results from a qualitative content analysis reveal a variation in the extent of problematization as well as several themes concerning the presentation of psychological abuse. These themes include: psychological abuse is a defining factor of dating violence; it is difficult to detect; it causes more damage to the target than physical types of violence; its covert nature allows it to seem 'normal'; and it is framed as being fostered by the hierarchal structuring of society.