Description:
The purpose of the present study was to examine the relation between family violence history and conflict resolution strategies among emerging adults (ages 18-19), a group largely overlooked in the research. Undergraduates (N = 249) completed self-report questionnaires regarding conflict strategies witnessed and experienced in the home during their adolescence and regarding the likelihood of using certain conflict resolution strategies with a romantic partner in response to hypothetical vignettes. Results indicated that family violence history did not predict conflict resolution strategies for the full sample. However, for a subsample of participants who had experienced physical aggression in the home, experiencing that aggression predicted later use of hostile strategies with a romantic partner. Witnessing aggression predicted later hostile strategy use for men, but not women. For both the full and subsamples, witnessing and experiencing reasoning in the home predicted later use of prosocial strategies.