Childhood trauma has long been associated with later interpersonal vulnerabilities. Dating violence represents a critical public health issue among emerging adults. The present study examined the relationship between childhood trauma and attitudes toward dating violence and explored potential gender differences. The sample consisted of 180 emerging adults (120 women, 60 men) aged 18-25 in Türkiye. Participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) and the Dating Violence Attitude Scale via online data collection. Ethical approval was obtained from the Mersin University institutional ethics committee, and informed consent was secured from all participants. Pearson correlation analyses revealed significant interrelations among childhood trauma subdimensions and among dating violence attitude subdimensions. A modest but significant positive association was found between physical neglect and attitudes toward sexual dating violence (r = .181, p < .05). However, no significant relationship emerged between overall childhood trauma and general dating violence attitudes. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated a significant gender difference in dating violence attitudes, with women reporting less supportive attitudes compared to men, t(178) = 5.05, p < .001. No significant gender differences were observed in childhood trauma levels.
These findings suggest that childhood trauma may not directly shape attitudes toward dating violence in emerging adulthood. Instead, gender-related socialization processes and broader sociocultural norms may play a more central role. The implications for gender-sensitive prevention and trauma-focused intervention programs should be considered.