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Adolescent interpersonal violence, particularly gender-based violence (GBV) and dating and relationship violence (DRV), are important public health issues frequently addressed through school-based interventions. This brief report systematically reviews the published evidence on mediational pathways for school-based interventions to effectively reduce GBV and DRV. As part of a larger systematic review funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, we identified six randomized trials in which mediation analyses of either DRV or GBV perpetration or victimization outcomes for four different interventions were conducted. We synthesize findings narratively by outcome, type of mediator, and follow-up period (short term or longitudinal). A total of eight mediators were analyzed across all studies. We found clear support for mediation through violence acceptance and delinquent behaviors; inconsistent support for mediation through knowledge, school belonging, belief in the need for help, and gender-inequitable beliefs; and no support for mediation through conflict management skills or bystander actions. These findings provide helpful suggestions on effective pathways for intervention efficacy. Overall, however, there is a need for mediation analyses to be conducted more often in GBV/DRV intervention evaluations. We discuss implications of these findings and suggest areas for future research on mediated pathways for GBV/DRV reduction.
Rizzo et al. (Fri,) studied this question.