Implicit Beliefs: Danish College Students’ perception of Intimate Partner Violence

Background

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) negatively affects health and wellbeing across genders. Yet many people do not label behaviors as IPV even when experts do and oftentimes those exposed to IPV struggle to recognize their imposition and seek help. Because effective prevention strategies must align with public knowledge, culture, and perceptions, young people entering or already in long-term relationships are a central group for prevention. This study therefore examined how Danish college students conceptualize IPV, when and under what circumstances they label relational events as IPV, and where they obtain their knowledge.

Methods

We conducted seven 90-minute single-gender focus groups with Danish college students (n = 26; 12 women, 14 men). Conversations focused on (1) conceptualizations of IPV and (2) motivations and perceived risk, supported by two interactive survey-based sticker activities. Sessions were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed thematically using inductive and deductive approaches.

Findings

Participants uniformly viewed IPV negatively, identified control as a core element, and rejected alcohol as a justification for violence. IPV was most often conceptualized as men harming women, with physical violence attributed to factors such as low education, work pressure, or poor emotional expression. Although all (100%) participants recognized psychological violence and bidirectionality, they primarily framed IPV as defined situations involving distinct “victims” and “offenders”. Most indicated being informed by podcasts, movies, and documentary films, which primarily featured female victims.

Discussion

Danish college students demonstrate a basic understanding of IPV and its harms but rely on stereotypical frameworks to identify specific behaviors. Prevention efforts may benefit from a gender-neutral approach which considers long-term power dynamics in relationships.

Key messages

• Danish college students’ reliance on stereotypes and gender biases, can obscure recognition of harmful relationship patterns.

• Our study contributes evidence to strengthening public health IPV prevention efforts by focusing on college students’ knowledge and biases, a key group for early intervention.