This study investigated the prospective pathways of children’s exposure to interparental violence (EIPV) in early and middle childhood and externalizing behavior in middle childhood and adolescence as developmental NU6027 predictors of dating violence perpetration and victimization at ages 23 and 26 years. early childhood directly predicted perpetration and victimization at age 23. There were significant indirect effects from EIPV to dating violence through externalizing behavior in adolescence and life stress at age 23. Independent of EIPV externalizing behavior in middle childhood also predicted dating violence through externalizing behavior in adolescence and life stress at age 23 but this pathway stemmed from maltreatment. These results highlight that the timing of EIPV and both the timing and continuity of externalizing behavior are critical risks for the intergenerational transmission of dating violence. Findings support a developmental perspective that negative early experiences and children’s externalizing behavior are powerful influences for dating violence in early adulthood. NU6027 = 168; 87 males 81 females) in the current study were drawn from the Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Risk and Adaptation an ongoing study that began with young high-risk mothers aged 12-34 (= 20.5 years = 3.74 years) and NU6027 their first-born children. Mothers were deemed “high-risk” due to living in poverty (100%) being unmarried (61%) and teenagers (50%) and having low educational attainment (only 59% had completed high school at the time of their child’s birth). They were initially enrolled three months before children were born to obtain information about prenatal functioning and their home environment. Children were enrolled at birth and followed into adulthood. (See Egeland 1991 and Egeland & Brunnquell 1979 for more information on the original sample). NU6027 The participants in this study were 67% Caucasian 11 African American 17 mixed race and 5% other minority. Given that the current study examined IKBKB dating violence in early adulthood romantic relationships the 168 participants were those who had participated in the early adulthood (ages 23 or 26 years) assessments. Attrition analyses indicated that there were no significant differences between participants included in the study and those who had not participated based on demographic characteristics that could account for effects of EIPV on dating violence (e.g. SES or mothers’ age or marital status at children’s birth). There also were no significant differences in EIPV or externalizing behavior at either time point for participants who were or were not included in the current study. The race of participants in NU6027 the current analyses was more likely to be Caucasian < .01. Measures: Independent Variables Exposure to interparental violence (EIPV; 0-64 months and grades 1-3) EIPV was coded based on mothers' responses to interviews and the Life Events Scale (see below) when children were 12 18 24 30 42 48 54 and 64 months old and when they were in grades 1-3. Mothers were asked about experiences of interparental violence with male spouses or partners. (During original data collection of EIPV in the late 1970s and early 1980s mothers were only asked about their experiences of victimization; as a result information on mothers' potential perpetration was not available). At each time point a score for EIPV was rated on 0-7-point scale from “No evidence of violence” to “Most severe form of violent interaction that is potentially seriously injurious to the mother and should require medical attention police intervention and/or shelter placement.” (See Table 1 for complete scale description). Coders were trained to rate EIPV and inter-rater reliability was computed for 50 cases coded by two trained graduate students at each time point. Intraclass correlations (ICCs) ranged from .93 to .99. Scores for EIPV were collapsed and the most severe ratings from 0-64 months and grades 1-3 were used to characterize EIPV in early childhood and middle childhood respectively. Table 1 Description of the Rating Scale for Exposure to Interparental Violence Externalizing behavior NU6027 (grades 1-3 and age 16 years) When children were in 1st 2 and 3rd grade their teachers provided ratings of externalizing behavior on the Achenbach Teacher Report Form (TRF; Achenbach & Edelbrock 1986 a behavior checklist of 118 items on 3-point scales (i.e. “not at all true ” “sometimes true” and “often true”). The Externalizing Problems subscale is one of two broadband scales (the other is Internalizing Problems). Given that the scores on the.