The prevalence of cyber dating abuse among adolescents and emerging adults: A meta-analysis

Numerous scholars have investigated the prevalence of cyber dating abuse (CDA) and recognize that CDA is a widespread phenomenon among adolescents and emerging adults. However, to date, there is no consensus on the extent to which adolescents and emerging adults perpetrate and experience CDA. Based on the PRISMA and MOOSE guidelines, the present work performed separate meta-analyses for studies involving adolescents and emerging adults. This study aims to estimate the pooled prevalence of CDA perpetration and victimization and try to explain discrepancies in the literature. In all, 69 publications (25 adolescent and 44 emerging adult studies) on CDA were identified through a systematic literature search, including 74 independent samples with a total of 62,376 participants. The results showed that the overall prevalence of CDA perpetration was 24.0% and victimization was 36.9% among adolescents, while 44.6% and 43.4% for CDA perpetration and victimization among emerging adults. Moderator analyses revealed that higher rates of CDA perpetration and victimization were found for older adolescents. In addition, control dimension had higher rates of CDA perpetration and victimization compared to direct aggression dimension among emerging adults. Finally, the assessed lifetime prevalence of CDA perpetration was higher than that assessed in the last year in emerging adults, whereas unpublished studies showed a higher prevalence of CDA victimization compared to published studies in adolescents. In sum, current evidence contributes to a better understanding of the prevalence and influencing factors for CDA among adolescents and emerging adults. Prevention and intervention programs are urgently required to reduce CDA behaviors in adolescents and emerging adults.