The Safe Dates program: 1-year follow-up results.

Objectives: An earlier report described desirable 1-month follow-up effects of the Safe Dates program on psychological, physical, and sexual dating violence. Mediators of the program-behavior relationship also were identified. The present report describes the 1-year follow-up effects of the Safe Dates program.

Methods: Fourteen schools were in the randomized experiment. Data were gathered by questionnaires in schools before program activities and 1 year after the program ended.

Results: The short-term behavioral effects had disappeared at 1 year, but effects on mediating variables such as dating violence norms, conflict management skills, and awareness of community services for dating violence were maintained.

Conclusions: The findings are considered in the context of why program effects might have decayed and the possible role of boosters for effect maintenance.