Dating Violence: Idealization of Love and Romantic Myths in Spanish Adolescents

In e na ional Jou nal o En i onmen al Resea ch and Public Heal h A icle Da ing Violence: Idealiza ion o Lo e and Roman ic My hs in Spanish Adolescen s Adelina Ma ín-Sal ado 1, Ka ima Saddiki-Mimoun 2, Ma íaÁngeles Pé ez-Mo en e 3,* , Ma ía Adelaida Ál a ez-Se ano 4,* , Ma ía Gázquez-López 4, Enca nación Ma ínez-Ga cía5,6 and Elisabe Fe nández-Gómez 1   Ci a ion: Ma ín-Sal ado , A.; Saddiki-Mimoun, K.; Pé ez-Mo en e, M.Á.; Ál a ez-Se ano, M.A.; Gázquez-López, M.; Ma ínez-Ga cía, E.; Fe nández-Gómez, E. Da ing Violence: Idealiza ion o Lo e and Roman ic My hs in Spanish Adolescen s. In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/ije ph 18105296 Academic Edi o : Ko-Ling Chan Recei ed: 15 Ap il 2021 Accep ed: 12 May 2021 Published: 16 May 2021 Publishe ’s No e: MDPI s ays neu al wi h ega d o ju isdic ional claims in published maps and ins i u ional a il- ia ions. Copy igh : © 2021 by he au ho s. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land. This a icle is an open access a icle dis ibu ed unde he e ms and condi ions o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion (CC BY) license (h ps:// c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/ 4.0/). 1Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o G anada, 52005 Melilla, Spain; adema in@ug .es (A.M.-S.); elisabe dez@ug .es (E.F.-G.) 2Hospi al Coma cal de Melilla, 52007 Melilla, Spain; [email p o ec ed] 3Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o Jaén, 23071 Jaén, Spain 4Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o G anada, 51001 Ceu a, Spain; mgazquez@ug .es 5Depa men o Nu sing, Facul y o Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o G anada, 18016 G anada, Spain; ema inez@ug .es 6Guadix High Resolu ion Hospi al, 18500 Guadix, G anada, Spain *Co espondence: [email p o ec ed] (M.Á.P.-M.); adeal a ez@ug .es (M.A.Á.-S.) Abs ac : Da ing iolence is a signi ican p oblem among adolescen s. I encompasses a a ie y o iolen beha io , om e bal abuse o physical and sexual abuse, om h ea s o ape and mu de . Among young people, idealiza ion o lo e and oman ic my hs a e e y common as a consequence o ou cul u e and socie y, which lead hem o de elop dys unc ional ela ionships ha somehow a o and acili a e pa ne iolence and sexis ideas in daily li e. Educa ion is he basic ool o e adica e disc imina ion and iolence agains women. The objec i e o his s udy is o explo e he alse my hs o oman ic lo e in adolescen s and hei ela ed ac o s. A c oss-sec ional s udy was conduc ed wi h 16–19-yea -old eenage s (n= 180), h ough ques ionnai es and by employing he oman ic lo e my hs scale, he ambi alen sexism in en o y, and he lo e a i udes scale. Adolescen s accep ed o a g ea e deg ee he lo e my hs associa ed wi h idealiza ion han hose ela ed o abuse wi h scale alues o Med = 2.72, SD = 0.55, and Med = 1.34, SD = 0.68, espec i ely. Designed models p edic lo e idealiza ion on he basis o bene olen sexism ( β = 0.03; CI 95% = 0.021–0.039), eligion ( β= 0.198 ; CI 95% = 0.047–0.349), passiona e lo e ( β= 0.038 ; CI 95% = 0.015–0.061), p ac ical lo e ( β= 0.024 ; CI 95% = 0.001–0.047), and iendly lo e ( β = 0.036; CI 95% = 0.014–0.058). Hos ile sexism and unde g adua e s udies we e associa ed wi h he my hs ha ela e lo e and abuse ( β = 0.19; CI 95% = 0.007–0.031, β= 0.208; CI 95% = 0.001–0.414, espec i ely). Keywo ds: gende s udies; da ing iolence agains women; adolescen s; oman ic lo e my hs 1. In oduc ion In ima e pa ne iolence (IPV) is one o he mos signi ican ep esen a ions o inequal- i y, subo dina ion, and powe ela ionships by men agains women [ 1 ]. The pe cen age o women a ound he wo ld a ec ed by i eaches 30%, hus cons i u ing an impo an public heal h issue occu ing in e e y coun y, cul u e, and social class, wi h se ious consequences on women’s heal h, bo h physical and men al [2]. In Spain, acco ding o he da a published by he Go e nmen Delega ion o Gende Violence in 2020, 45 women we e mu de ed by hei pa ne s o o me pa ne s and 113,615 in ima e pa ne iolence cases we e epo ed [3]. S udies ha e e ealed ha , despi e he e o s made, iolence agains women s ill exis s among Spanish eenage s and schoolchild en [ 4 – 6 ]. F om 2013, he yea in which cases o een da ing iolence s a ed being eco ded in ou coun y, 37 mu de s o young In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/ije ph18105296 h ps://www.mdpi.com/jou nal/ije ph In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 2 o 11 women by hei pa ne o o me pa ne ha e been egis e ed [ 7 ]. Diaz-Aguado e al., in hei s udy “La si uación de la iolencia con a las muje es en la adolescencia en España” (Violence agains women in adolescence in Spain) poin ou ha he isk o all kinds o iolence, bo h e bal abuse and h ea s, physical and sexual, as well as ape and mu de , inc eases du ing da ing. Among 16–24-yea -old gi ls who s a e ha ing had a oman ic ela ionship, 2.5% o hem su e ed physical iolence compa ed o he 0.8% epo ed by 25- yea -old o olde women. Likewise, he es ima ed p e alence in bo h age g oups o sexual iolence is o 3.7% and 1.1%, espec i ely; o psychological iolence in ol ing con ol, o 17.3% and 5.9%; and o psychological and emo ional abuse, o 11.6% and 5.0%. The la e is especially equen among adolescen s, being epo ed by 20% o 16–17-yea -old women who ha e been in a ela ionship, diminishing as age inc eases [ 5 ]. Rele an di e ences in psychological consequences we e also obse ed, whe e 80.8% o young women ha e expe ienced hem, compa ed o 68.3% o olde women. In addi ion o anxie y o anguish, wan ing o c y o no eason, i i abili y, and mood swings, hey epo a highe le el o suicidal idea ion [ 5 ]. Wi hin he academic con ex , hese women show mo e di icul y in hei s udies, hei in eg a ion wi h pee s, and sel -es eem, compa ed o hose who ha e no su e ed IPV [ 8 ]. Howe e , hey eso o police o cou s in a lesse deg ee o epo he iolence su e ed (14.5% s. 22.6%), o o eques help se ices (heal h, psychological, social, legal assessmen se ices, e c.) o ace he consequences he eo (27.3% s. 33.3%) [ 5 ]. Adolescence is a pe iod in which se e al changes occu a biological, psychological, and social le els. Sexual a ac ion and ela ionships s a aking place, and he idealiza ion o lo e and he exis ence o oman ic my hs a e e y common [ 9 ]. Roman ic lo e is de i ed om he my h o he And ogyne desc ibed in Pla o’s The Banque [ 10 ], which jus i ies he bases o he na u alness and uni e sali y o lo e. Ne e heless, oday i is based mo e on poli e lo e and he need o li e wi h someone who comple es ou exis ence [ 11 ]. Roman ic lo e my hs mainly lie in he obsessi e sea ch o he pe ec pa ne who will make us o ally happy, so ha socie y has come o conside ha su e ing is na u al i such complemen is no ound [11]. Fo he pa ia chal socie y, being a woman, and i s ela ed emale oles, is associa ed wi h being a wi e and a mo he and, he e o e, wi h he ask o p o iding ca e, a ec ion, and lo e o o he s [ 11 ]. Mo eo e , om se e al eligious sec o s o he pa ia chal socie y, he passi e ole and he ole o subo dina ion o women owa ds men ha e been encou aged and ein o ced. The media also p omo e he idea ha oman ic lo e is he ideal o unique and ue lo e [ 12 ]. Thus, in o de o a ain such lo e, young women may conside ha hey should su ende o hei pa ne s o ally, jus like a mo he lo e [ 13 ]. In his way, oman ic my hs a such ages a e deemed ep esen a ions o so-called ue lo e [ 14 ]. Bu he exis ence o hese my hs in a ela ionship may easily lead o episodes o gende iolence which, howe e , may be unde s ood as ac s o lo e [12,13,15]. On he o he hand, i has been widely documen ed ha sexis a i udes help pe - pe ua e gende inequali y [ 16 ]. Glick and Fiske s a e ha sexism is based on h ee ideas: domina ing pa e nalism (women a e weake and in e io o men); compe i i e gende di e en ia ion (women a e di e en and do no ha e he necessa y cha ac e is ics o go e n social ins i u ions, amily and home being hei places); and he e osexual hos ili y (women, due o hei sexual powe , a e dange ous and ha e he capaci y o manipula e men) [ 17 ]. These au ho s also di e en ia e wo componen s which, al hough ela ed, a e clea ly dis- inguished: hos ile sexism and bene olen sexism. Hos ile sexism, o adi ional sexism, conside s women in e io and weak wi h espec o men. Bene olen sexism is de ined as a se o a i udes owa ds women based on a s e eo yped ision limi ed o ce ain oles, bu which has a posi i e emo ional aspec o he ecei e [17,18]. Educa ion is essen ial o p e en pa ne iolence, since i is he basis o knowledge and i allows o he de elopmen o skills which ain eenage s o make hei own decisions and unde ake hei own esponsibili ies. Such ea ly ages a e a o able o modi ying igid eachings, my hs, aboos, belie s, and conduc which may ha e had an in luence on hei educa ion [ 19 – 22 ]. Tha is why, in he las se e al yea s, mul iple educa ional in e en ions In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 3 o 11 ha e been de eloped wi h he aim o p omo ing gende equali y; p e en ing agg essi e beha io among pee s, bo h wi hin and wi hou social media; as well as add essing sexis a i udes and oman ic my hs among adolescen s [ 23 , 24 ]. Such an example is he p og am “De eloping heal hy and egali a ian adolescen ela ionships” (DARSI) implemen ed in he Valencian Communi y (Spain), which showed an associa ion be ween his ype o in e en ion and a signi ican dec ease in agg essi e conduc . The e icacy o he p og am acco ding o Wilks’ Lambda dis ibu ion was 0.656, F (12, 338) = 6.608, p< 0.001, wi h a la ge e ec size, η2= 0.190) [25]. Howe e , apa om educa ional ins i u es’ in ol emen in and commi men o pa ne iolence p e en ion, hei in e ac ion wi h cou , social, and heal h sys ems is also necessa y [ 26 – 28 ]. The ole o he school nu se is s a egic in educa ion cen e s, bo h o de ec cases o da ing iolence, p o ide imely heal h a en ion, and design s a egies ha shall help p e en and e adica e such phenomena [ 29 ]. Ne e heless, he in o ma ion ela ed o he pe sis ence o oman ic my hs in adolescen s and hei ela ed ac o s is s ill incipien . The objec i e o his s udy is o explo e he alse oman ic my hs in young people aged 16–19 and hei ela ed ac o s. 2. Ma e ials and Me hods 2.1. Da a Collec ion This is a c oss-sec ional s udy by means o an anonymous ques ionnai e, sel -comple ed online by 16–19-yea -old adolescen s in Ap il 2020 in a ci y in Sou he n Spain. The numbe o s uden s s udying in he las yea o seconda y school and he i s yea o s udy a a uni e si y in he ci y we e 299 and 91, espec i ely. By means o non-p obabili y quo a sampling by cou se, wi h a con idence le el o 95% and maximum es ima ion e o o 7%, a sample size o 180 adolescen s was es ima ed. Said me hod was chosen o gua an ee he p opo ionali y o indi iduals wi h unde g adua e and g adua e s udies ega ding dis ibu ion o s uden s en olled in he cen e s selec ed o he s udy. All en olled s uden s had he same oppo uni y o access he ques ionnai e. 2.2. Measu emen Tool Fo collec ion o da a, Bosch e al.’s (2008) oman ic lo e my hs scale [ 30 ], Glick and Fiske’s (1996) ambi alen sexism in en o y [ 17 ] and Hend ick, Hend ick, and Dick’s (1998) lo e a i udes scale [ 31 ] we e employed. In addi ion, a iables such as gende , age (yea s old), eligion (being a belie e o a non-belie e ), oman ic s a us (in a ela ionship and no in a ela ionship), and le el o s udy (unde g adua e and g adua e) we e collec ed. The oman ic lo e my hs scale [ 30 ] was alida ed in Spanish by Bosch e al. I com- p ises 10 i ems g ouped by wo dimensions: lo e idealiza ion (8 i ems) and lo e–abuse ela ionship (2 i ems). The answe o ma is Like ype, 1 = o ally disag ee and 5 = o ally ag ee. The o al scale showed good eliabili y (C onbach’s alpha = 0.64), being 0.69 o he lo e idealiza ion subscale, and o 0.77 o he lo e–abuse link subscale [ 32 ]. Lemus e al. [ 33 ] adap ed o Spanish he ambi alen sexism in en o y [ 17 ], composed o 22 i ems wi h wo dimensions, hos ile sexism and bene olen sexism, o 11 i ems each. The Like ype answe o ma anges om 1 = o ally disag ee o 5 = o ally ag ee. Measu emen s o he gene al scale as a measu e o ambi alen sexism show a C onbach’s alpha o 0.81, which in he hos ile sexism subscale is 0.84, and in bene olen sexism, 0.77 [ 33 ]. Finally, he lo e a i udes scale designed by Hend ick, Hend ick, and Dick and alida ed in Spanish by Rod íguez-Cas o e al., 2013 [ 34 ] is composed o 18 i ems g ouped by six dimensions, co esponding o six ypes o lo e: oman ic lo e, play ul lo e, iendly lo e, p ac ical lo e, obsessi e lo e, and al uis ic lo e [ 31 ]. Likewise, i uses Like ype answe s whe e 1 = o ally disag ee and 5 = o ally ag ee, he scale eliabili y anging om 0.88 o al uis ic lo e o 0.68 o p ac ical lo e [34]. In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 4 o 11 2.3. Da a Analysis The sample was desc ibed by means o equencies and measu es o cen al endency (mean and s anda d de ia ion) pu suan o he quan i a i e o quali a i e na u e o he a iables analyzed. La e , bi a ia e analyses we e conduc ed o lo e idealiza ion and o he lo e–abuse link, he wo componen s o oman ic lo e my hs, conside ing as independen a iables sociodemog aphic ac o s (age, gende , le el o s udy, oman ic s a us, and eligious belie s), he dimensions o he ambi alen sexism scale (bene olen sexism and hos ile sexism) and lo e a i udes (passiona e lo e, play ul lo e, iendly lo e, p ac ical lo e, obsessi e lo e, and al uis ic lo e). Fo con as ing means, he S uden ’s pa ame ic es was applied and he e ec size was calcula ed by means o Cohen’s d. Fu he mo e, Pea son’s co ela ion analysis was ca ied ou on bo h dimensions o oman ic lo e my hs scale wi h age, dimensions o lo e a i udes and ambi alen sexism scales, es ablishing he le el o s a is ical signi icance a a alue o p< 0.05. Finally, wo models o s epwise mul iple linea eg ession we e designed by in o- ducing all he independen a iables, es ima ing he be a alues, s anda d e o , and hei con idence in e als a 95%. The linea i y and independence o esiduals we e e i ied by means o he Du bin–Wa son s a is ic, hus de e mining accep able alues o independence o less han 2.5. E e y analysis has been conduc ed using he S a is ical Package o he Social Sciences (SPSS) p og am, e sion 25, (IBM, New Yo k, NY, USA, o Mac). 2.4. E hical Conside a ions The s udy complies wi h good clinical p ac ice egula ions, se o h in Eu opean Di ec i e 2001/20/EC, and in Law 14/2007, o 3 July, on biomedical esea ch. T ea men o pe sonal da a in heal h esea ch is go e ned by he p o isions o O ganic Law 3/2018 o 5 Decembe , on he p o ec ion o pe sonal da a and gua an ee o digi al igh s. Pa icipan s we e in o med o he objec i es o he s udy and p o ided hei consen o pa icipa e by checking a speci ic box. 3. Resul s The sample included 184 s uden s wi h a mean age o 17.6, SD = 1.15 yea s and a emale a io o 74.5%. As ega ds le el o s udy, 121 (65.8%) we e unde g adua e s uden s, 62% (n= 114) we e no in a oman ic ela ionship, and 128 (69.6%) decla ed hemsel es belie e s (Table 1). Table 1. Pa icipan s’ sociodemog aphic cha ac e is ics. Va iables Pa icipan s (n= 184) M (SD) Age (yea s old) 17.6 (1.15) n(%) Gende Male 47 (25.5) Female 137 (74.5) Le el o s udy Unde g adua e 121 (65.8) G adua e 63 (34.2) Roman ic s a us No in a ela ionship 114 (62) In a ela ionship 70 (38) Religion Belie e 128 (69.6) Non-belie e 56 (30.4) M = mean; SD = s anda d de ia ion; n= equency; % = pe cen age. In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 5 o 11 Table 2shows he mean o sco es ob ained in he di e en dimensions o he oman ic lo e my hs, ambi alen sexism, and lo e a i udes scales. Lo e idealiza ion and bene olen sexism eached he highes sco es o 2.72 (0.55) and 2.25 (0.65), espec i ely. Play ul lo e is he one which, less equen ly, pa icipa ing adolescen s s a e hey eel, wi h a sco e o 2.11 (0.96). Table 2. Desc ip i e alues o oman ic lo e my hs, ambi alen sexism, and lo e a i udes scales. M (SD) Roman ic lo e my hs Lo e idealiza ion 2.72 (0.55) Lo e–abuse link 1.34 (0.68) Ambi alen sexism Bene olen sexism 2.25 (0.65) Hos ile sexism 1.99 (0.72) Lo e a i udes Passiona e lo e 3.3 (0.96) Play ul lo e 2.11 (0.97) F iendly lo e 3.16 (0.01) P ac ical lo e 3.16 (0.1) Obsessi e lo e 2.41 (0.85) Al uis ic lo e 2.59 (0.97) M = Mean; SD = S anda d De ia ion. Table 3shows he esul s o bi a ia e analyses o he wo dimensions o he oman ic lo e my hs scale. Among hose who decla ed hemsel es belie e s, a sco e o 2.83 is obse ed in lo e idealiza ion wi h s a is ically signi ican di e ences and a mean e ec size wi h espec o non-belie ing adolescen s (p= 0.001; Cohen’s d = 0.683). Likewise, bene olen sexism was posi i ely and mode a ely co ela ed o his dimension ( = 0.487; p= 0.01 ), while p ac ical lo e, passiona e lo e, hos ile sexism, iendly lo e, obsessi e lo e, and al uis ic lo e did so weakly (p= 0.01). Rega ding he lo e–abuse link dimension, men and adolescen s s udying unde g adua e s udies we e he ones who showed highe sco es al hough wi h a weak e ec magni ude (p= 0.033; Cohen’s d = 0.361 and p=006; Co- hen’s d = 0.105 , espec i ely). Hos ile sexism was sligh ly associa ed wi h his componen ( = 0.260 ;p= 0.01), ollowed by al uis ic lo e, play ul lo e, and obsessi e lo e (p< 0.05). Al hough weakly, i is obse ed ha he olde he indi idual, he less he associa ion wi h lo e–abuse ( = −0.166; p= 0.05). Table 3. Bi a ia e analysis o dimensions o he oman ic lo e my hs scale. Lo e Idealiza ion Lo e–Abuse Link M (SD) pCohen’s d M (SD) pCohen’s d Gende Male (n= 47) 2.72 (0.56) 0.960 1.52 (0.77) 0.033 * 0.361 Female (n= 137) 2.73 (0.54) 1.28 (0.64) Le el o s udy Unde g adua e (n= 121) 2.74 (0.53) 0.501 1.44 (0.74) 0.006 ** 0.105 G adua e (n= 63) 2.69 (0.57) 1.15 (0.50) Roman ic s a us No in a ela ionship (n= 114) 2.71 (0.53) 0.743 1.39 (0.75) 0.239 In a ela ionship (n= 70) 2.74 (0.58) 1.26 (0.55) Religion Belie e (n= 128) 2.83 (0.53) 0.001 ** 0.683 1.38 (0.75) 0.288 Non-belie e (n= 56) 2.48 (0.51) 1.26 (0.48) p p Age 0.040 0.588 −0.166 0.025 * Bene olen sexism 0.487 0.001 ** 0.077 0.297 Hos ile sexism 0.268 0.001 ** 0.260 0.001 ** Passiona e lo e 0.301 0.001 ** −0.062 0.4 Play ul lo e 0.070 0.344 0.177 0.017 * F iendly lo e 0.254 0.001 ** 0.001 0.992 P ac ical lo e 0.331 0.001 ** −0.075 0.313 Obsessi e lo e 0.252 0.001 ** 0.157 0.033 * Al uis ic lo e 0.216 0.006 ** 0.187 0.011 * M = Mean; SD = S anda d De ia ion; = Pea son Co ela ion Coe icien ; * p< 0.05. ** p< 0.01. Cohen’s d = E ec size. In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 6 o 11 Table 4shows he inal eg ession model o he lo e idealiza ion dimension wi h he i e p edic o a iables ha explained he 39.5% a iabili y. In his sense, adolescen s who a e belie e s, wi h a endency owa d bene olen sexism and wi h a ision o passiona e, p ac ical, and iendly lo e a e he ones who end o idealize lo e. Table 4. Mul iple linea eg ession model o lo e idealiza ion. Va iable βE o De . 95% CI Bene olen sexism 0.03 0.005 0.021 0.039 Belie e 0.198 0.076 0.047 0.349 Passiona e lo e 0.038 0.012 0.015 0.061 P ac ical lo e 0.024 0.012 0.001 0.047 F iendly lo e 0.036 0.011 0.014 0.058 Du bin Wa son Tes = 1.709; F = 23.24; p< 0.001. Fo he lo e–abuse link dimension, he p edic i e model was composed o he hos ile sexism and unde g adua e s udies a iables, which explained he 8.7% a iabili y ( Table 5) . I was unde g adua e s uden s wi h a endency owa d hos ile sexism who showed a endency owa d he lo e–abuse link. Table 5. Mul iple linea eg ession model o he lo e-abuse link. Va iable βE o De . 95% CI Hos ile sexism 0.19 0.006 0.007 0.031 Unde g adua e 0.208 0.105 0.001 0.414 Du bin Wa son Tes = 1.882; F = 8.68; p< 0.001. 4. Discussion This s udy con ibu es signi ican da a on he in luence o sexism on adolescen s, as well as on hei belie s and a i udes owa ds lo e in di e en academic con ex s, hus inc easing he empi ical e idence o such knowledge [12,35,36]. Ou esul s show ha lo e my hs ela ed o he idealiza ion o lo e a e mo e accep ed by adolescen s han hose ela ed o abuse. Mo eo e , mo e sexis bene olen a i udes a e obse ed han hos ile a i udes, as p e iously documen ed in popula ions wi h simila sociodemog aphic cha ac e is ics [ 31 , 35 , 36 ]. They also e eal he ela ionship be ween bo h concep s; ha is, an inc ease in sexis a i udes, whe he hos ile o bene olen , seems o lead o he my hi ica ion o lo e. Du ing adolescence, Ca bonell and Mes e iden i ied hese a i udes as isk ac o s o he es ablishmen o unbalanced ela ionships and wi h a endency owa d abuse [37]. Among all lo e a i udes analyzed, he passiona e ision was highligh ed abo e all o he s, ollowed by he iendly one, as ega ds he es ablishmen o a long- e m commi men , and o he p ac ical one o sea ch o he pe ec lo e, being he p oduc o he combina ion o equi emen s mo e han o own eelings. Such esul s coincide wi h hose epo ed by Moyeda e al., who in e p e hem om he pe spec i e o social models imposed h ough di e en media and ins i u ions [38]. Wi h espec o gende , boys and gi ls in his s udy had a simila oman ic pe cep ion, as ound by Rod íguez and Alonso [ 39 ], al hough such indings disag ee wi h hose o o he au ho s. In his sense, i is epo ed ha women may end o su ende o ally o hei pa ne s, while men ha e a mo e demanding a i ude [ 13 , 37 ]. Ca a e al. [ 40 ] also demons a ed di e ences be ween boys and gi ls. Al hough oman ic lo e my hs we e a signi ican p edic o o cybe ne ic con ol ic imiza ion (ways o abusi e con ol o ic ims o moni o hei social ela ionships and wha hey a e doing a any ime) bo h in boys and gi ls, said au ho s hold ha belie ing such my hs could ha e had a highe impac on gi ls. On he o he hand, in bo h gende s, oman ic my hs we e a signi ican posi i e In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 7 o 11 p edic o o cybe con ol and cybe -agg ession ic imiza ion (beha io in ol ing ha m o ic ims h ough di ec a acks, o ins ance, h ea s, insul s, o disclosu e o p i a e in o ma ion). Ne e heless, i s weigh has be e p edic ed cybe con ol ic imiza ion in adolescen gi ls. We do obse e highe sco es in he lo e–abuse link among adolescen boys, which esul coincides wi h o he publica ions [ 33 , 41 ]. Such a i udes deno e he in e naliza ion o iolence wi hin he oman ic ela ionship con ex om an ea ly age, which is eally dis u bing, especially in a socie y whe e o mal o legal equali y is a eali y, bu , howe e , o each ac ual gende equali y, i seems e iden ha mo e e o s a e s ill equi ed [42]. Age was in e sely ela ed o he lo e–abuse link, so ha as i inc eases, he associa ion diminishes. Al hough he age ma gin analyzed is na ow, his inding may be indica i e o a endency owa d he es ablishmen o heal hie oman ic ela ionships as adolescen s ma u e [37,43,44]. Upon conside a ion o he le el o s udy, unde g adua e s uden s suppo ed sligh ly mo e nega i e a i udes in he lo e–abuse link han g adua e s uden s. Wang [ 45 ] obse ed ha as he educa ional le el o pa icipan s inc eased, a i udes and pe cep ions owa ds pa ne iolence had no signi ican e ec . In con as , Na a o-Pé ez e al. [ 44 ] poin ou ha o mal educa ion has a di ec in luence on sexis a i udes; in he in e en ion pe o med, sexism was educed be ween 6 and 12%. The sociodemog aphic a iable wi h highe ele ance in ou s udy was, undoub edly, conside ing you sel a belie e . This aspec has an impac on bo h dimensions, in pa icula , on lo e idealiza ion wi h a mean e ec size. People wi h eligious belie s may also show mo e adi ional li es yles ending owa d a highe no maliza ion o such my hs. In P ina and Scha z-S e ens’ s udy [ 46 ], eligiousness was also a s ong p edic o o sexism bo h in he U.S. and he I alian popula ions ( β = 0.25, p< 0.001; β = 0.31, p< 0.001, espec i ely) as well as o he accep ance o he iolence my h ( β = 0.21, p< 0.05; β = 0.13, p< 0.01). O he s udies explo ed he link be ween eligious a ilia ion and iolence agains women [ 47 – 49 ]. Ghanim [ 49 ] compa ed he ela ionship be ween Ch is ians and Muslims, and di e en ypes o iolence agains women, acco ding o opinions o women hemsel es. Muslims expe ienced highe p e alence in all ypes o iolence (physical and/o sexual, and psychological) compa ed o Ch is ian women, which may be aken in o accoun o loca e popula ions wi h a highe isk o su e ing his kind o iolence. Ou p edic i e model, ob ained o lo e idealiza ion, was de e mined by bene olen sexis conduc s, being a belie e , and by a i udes a o ing passiona e, p ac ical, and iendly lo e, which indings coincide wi h hose documen ed by o he au ho s. Gul e al. [ 50 ], in hei e iew o li e a u e, concluded ha women ind men wi h bene olen sexism a i udes a ac i e because hey el hey we e willing o p o ec , p o ide, and commi , despi e being awa e o he ha m ul consequences. Lelau ain e al. [ 51 ] epo ed ha pa icipan s mo e inclined o oman ic lo e we e p one o blaming ic imized women and o exone a ing he ba e e , which means a link among oman ic lo e, ambi alen sexism, and domes ic iolence my hs. Fu he mo e, i has been widely documen ed ha lo e s yles a e lea n h ough cul u al ules and p ac ices in he ela ionship. In adi ional cul u es, he p ac ical lo e s yle seems o be less alued by conside ing ha his eeling a ises mo e om an emo ional ac han om a logical one [ 31 , 52 , 53 ]. The e o e, i is possible o hink ha mo e eligious socie ies will end o pe pe ua e my hs ela ed o he idealiza ion and sea ch o pe ec lo e like passiona e, iendly and p ac ical lo e. Hos ile sexism and a lowe le el o s udies, in ou p edic i e model, we e sligh ly associa ed wi h he lo e–abuse link. Hos ile and bene olen sexism a e complemen a y ideologies ha p e ail in cul u es, and bo h p edic gende inequali ies [ 19 ]. In Spain, i has been obse ed ha wi hin a sho ime pe iod, sexis a i udes ha e been inc easing signi ican ly among young people. Since he pu pose o educa ion in equali y is cu en ly a p io i y in ou educa ional con ex , i may no , howe e , be p oducing ce ain esul s such as educing hos ile sexism, a leas among pa icipan s o his s udy. Al hough we obse e a sligh associa ion be ween a lowe le el o s udy and lo e–abuse, we coincide wi h Bosch In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 8 o 11 e al. [ 54 ] when poin ing ou ha associa ing a low sociocul u al le el wi h pa ne iolence is a misogynis ic my h adi ionally used o jus i y such iolen conduc s. In gene al, his s udy is in line wi h hose concluding ha he pe pe ua ion o oman ic lo e my hs helps main ain gende s e eo ypes and inequali y be ween men and women, hus jus i ying he iolence su e ed by women in hei oman ic ela ionships [55,56]. The ela ionship o ca e be ween nu ses and pa ien s makes i possible o alue a pe son comp ehensi ely, hei amily and social en i onmen , and he consequences o hei child en. In his sense, he ole o a nu se includes ca e and aining and educa ion on an equal oo ing ega ding adul s and, especially, child en and young people. Since hey p o ide heal h educa ion in sexual in e cou se and consen , nu ses may help p omo e heal hy ela ionships among adolescen s. This gua an ees ha young people know any esou ces and suppo a ailable in o de o a oid sexual abuse and iolence. Fu he mo e, nu ses acili a e access o se ices o ic ims o abuse [ 57 ]. The igu e o he school nu se could, by means o wo kshops, design s a egies ha shall help p e en and e adica e such phenomenon [29]. S udy Limi a ions This s udy has se e al limi a ions. Fi s o all, he ype o quo a sampling may ha e inclined pa icipa ion owa ds pa icipan s mo e awa e o gende equali y, which would include a classi ica ion bias. Mo eo e , he low pa icipa ion o boys, ega dless o e lec ing hei low in e es in his opic, may ha e minimized he associa ions ound. Howe e , in gene al, he esul s obse ed a e in line wi h o he s udies, which con ibu es heo e ical consis ency o he s udy. To o e come such limi a ions, in subsequen esea ch, a highe e o should be made o achie e gende -balanced pa icipa ion. Al hough he ep esen a ion o s uden s has been sa is ac o y and, he e o e, he in e nal alidi y o he s udy may be deemed adequa e, in o de o gene alize ou esul s, he numbe o educa ional cen e s should be inc eased o inc ease ex e nal alidi y and, he e o e, i s gene aliza ion o o he con ex s. Las ly, he exis ence o social desi abili y bias in answe s should no be elimina ed, since we add essed especially sensi i e opics like lo e my hs and sexism. To con ol i , he anonymi y o he s uden s, who olun ee ed o he s udy, was gua an eed. 5. Conclusions We ha e obse ed ha adolescen s uden s end o accep lo e my hs ela ed o idealiza ion o lo e mo e han hose ela ed o abuse. Such idealiza ion o lo e was ela ed o p ac icing a eligion, and no o gende , le el o s udy, o oman ic s a us. Unde g adua e boys showed a i udes mo e ela ed o lo e–abuse. Bene olen sexism, eligion, passiona e lo e, p ac ical lo e, and iendly lo e p edic ed a highe idealiza ion o lo e, while hos ile sexism and unde g adua e s udies ac ed as ac o s p edic ing lo e–abuse. Awa eness o hese ac o s could be use ul in designing socio-educa ional s a egies add essing lo e my hs and sexis a i udes s ill pe sis en among adolescen s in ou egion. School nu ses ha e an impo an ole o play in educa ion cen e s as p o essionals di ec ly in ol ed in he a en ion and p e en ion o iolence agains women in he ela ionship con ex , mainly a an ea ly age. Au ho Con ibu ions: Concep ualiza ion, A.M.-S., K.S.-M., and M.Á.P.-M.; me hodology, E.M.-G., M.G.-L. and M.A.Á.-S.; o mal analysis, A.M.-S. and M.A.Á.-S.; in es iga ion, A.M.-S., K.S.-M. and E.F.-G.; da a cu a ion, A.M.-S., K.S.-M. and M.A.Á.-S.; w i ing—o iginal d a p epa a ion, A.M.-S., K.S.-M., M.Á.P.-M., M.A.Á.-S., M.G.-L., E.M.-G., E.F.-G.; w i ing— e iew and edi ing, A.M.-S., K.S.- M., M.Á.P.-M., M.A.Á.-S., M.G.-L., E.M.-G., E.F.-G.; isualiza ion, A.M.-S. and E.F.-G.; supe ision, A.M.-S. and E.M.-G. All au ho s ha e ead and ag eed o he published e sion o he manusc ip . Funding: This esea ch ecei ed no ex e nal unding. In . J. En i on. Res. Public Heal h 2021,18, 5296 9 o 11 Ins i u ional Re iew Boa d S a emen : The e hical e iew and app o al o his s udy was wai ed, because he pa icipan s signed he in o med consen p io o he s udy. In o med Consen S a emen : In o med consen was ob ained om all subjec s in ol ed in he s udy. 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