Teen relationship abuse has become a nationwide problem in the United States, whether physical or mental. Teen relationship violence is coming closer and closer to home, even though many think it's not happening in their community. It was found in a national survey that 9.4 percent of high school students have had a physical relationship. (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, paragraph 3). Since many adolescents believe it is acceptable to hit or abuse each other, the incidence of abuse is high. in relationships is increasingly high, thus affecting adolescents in various forms. Witnessing abuse can lead to harming a partner or letting them harm you. If a child lives in a home where the father or mother's boyfriend treats him badly, whether verbally or physically, then the child will believe that this type of behavior is normal. It has been shown that boys who see their fathers abusing their mothers at home are more likely to grow up to abuse their partners because they view it as normal behavior. (Domestic Violence Roundtable par. 10). Mothers who are abused by their fathers have been shown to allow their boyfriends and husbands to abuse them when they are older. (Domestic Violence Roundtable, para. 10) These trends in boys and girls are terrible given that they will repeat the pattern and their children will inherit the same behavior. the same type of behavior keeps the trend going. Alcohol and drug use is also another cause of adolescent partner abuse. The law prohibits teenagers from consuming alcohol since the legal drinking age is 21 and drugs are also not legal in the United States. Considering that teenagers are known to be still mentally developing and don't make the right decisions in the middle of paper......getting together with their friends pushes them to make the wrong decisions. » (Parent Experts in Universal Resources par. 3) In conclusion, the start of many adolescent abusive relationships is due to witnessing abuse at a young age, using drugs and alcohol, and trying to fit in with certain groups of friends. Works Cited Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)Teen Dating Violence http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/intimatepartnerviolence/teen_dating_violence.html Roundtable on Domestic ViolenceThe effects of domestic violence on children http://www .domesticviolenceroundtable.org/effect-on-children. html Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) Alcohol and Other Drugs https://webapps.ou.edu/alcohol/docs/01factsheetonalcoholanddrugs.pdf Parents Universal Resource Experts (PURE) Peer Pressure http://www .helpyourteens.com/peer_pression. php