Understanding the Impact of Deviant Peer Association on Dual Systems Model Development: Testing the Moderating Role of ADHD.

ABSTRACT: Recent research has indicated that deviant peers may play a role in cognitive development. This is particularly the case for the dual systems model, a key framework for understanding engagement in antisocial behavior during adolescence and emerging adulthood. However, limited research has examined how preexisting mental health concerns may moderate these relationships. This study used the Pathways to Desistance data to examine attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as a moderator of the relationships between deviant peer association and dual systems model constructs. Generalized estimating equations were used to test these relationships. Results indicated that deviant peer association and the presence of ADHD both predicted increased sensation-seeking and lower impulse control. ADHD significantly moderated the relationship between deviant peer association and impulse control, indicating a weaker impact of deviant peer association on impulse control among participants with ADHD. No significant interaction was observed for the relationship between deviant peer association and sensation-seeking.

The transition from physical sibling abuse to bullying perpetration through trait anger: A longitudinal study.

OBJECTIVES: Experiencing physical sibling abuse is a form of family violence that is common but understudied. While it is often perceived as a normative aspect of sibling relationships, there are apparent behavioral consequences. The current study aims to advance the literature by utilizing the displaced aggression model and I3 theory to longitudinally examine trait anger as a pathway linking physical sibling abuse to bullying perpetration. METHODS: Using data from the Bullying, Sexual, and Dating Violence Trajectories from Early to Late Adolescence in the Midwestern United States, 2008-2013, adolescents (n = 851, M = 14.8 years) completed questionnaires at baseline and were reassessed 6 months later. RESULTS: Results suggested that when adolescents experience physical sibling abuse, they are more likely to engage in bullying perpetration. Mediation analyses indicated that as adolescents were physically abused by a sibling at home, they were more likely to report higher levels of trait anger, which subsequently increased their risk of engaging in bullying perpetration. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that experiencing physical sibling abuse has long-term detrimental consequences, including elicitation of trait anger, subsequently predicting bullying perpetration.

Relative impacts of a virtual cooking and nutrition program for children and families.

Among the many factors contributing to increased consumption of ultraprocessed foods, a societal decline in cooking skills is a barrier to achieving healthy dietary patterns among children and adolescents. The current study assessed the effectiveness of a healthy cooking program, its geographic reach, and whether program format (child only, in-person format vs. family-based, virtual format) influenced outcomes. This was a quasi-experimental comparison study using youths' (8-18 years old) pre-post surveys, paired t-tests, propensity score matching, and hot spot analysis. Children participated in one of two healthy cooking programs: Flint Kids Cook (FKC)] in-person or [Flint Families Cook (FFC) virtual. FKC was facilitated inside a farmers' market commercial kitchen, whereas FFC took place virtually, in families' homes. Youth were eligible to participate in FKC if they were age 8-18 years, spoke English, and had not participated in a prior session. Families were eligible to participate in FFC if they had a child(ren) age 8-18 years, spoke English, and had not participated in a prior session of FKC or FFC. A total of 246 children (152 FKC; 94 FFC) completed assessments. FFC participants reported improved cooking self-efficacy (p < 0.001), intake of vegetables (p = 0.04), health-related quality of life (HRQoL; p = 0.01), and physical functioning (p < 0.001). Geographic reach, cooking self-efficacy, attitude towards cooking, and HRQoL exit scores did not differ between virtual or in-person programs. However, virtual program participants reported higher intake of whole grains (p = 0.02) and total fruits (p = 0.02) than in-person participants. Differences in outcomes based on program format included notable dietary improvements among youth who participated in the family-based virtual program.

ADHD as a Predictor of Quicker Time to Violent Recidivism and a Moderator of the Exposure to Violence-Violent Recidivism Relationship.

Research on the role that attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) plays as a moderator of the relationship between exposure to violence and violent recidivism is limited. The Pathways to Desistance data were analyzed to examine these relationships. Survival analysis was used to examine ADHD as a risk factor predicting time to violent recidivism. Cox-proportional hazard modeling was used to assess the impact of ADHD on violent recidivism risk and examine ADHD as a moderator of the relationship between exposure to violence and violent recidivism. Results indicated that ADHD predicted quicker time to recidivism. The effect of witnessed violence was significantly weaker for participants with ADHD at baseline than those without ADHD at baseline. The direct effect of ADHD diagnosis at baseline on violent recidivism risk was only significant when the hypothesized interaction terms were included in the model. These findings suggest that individuals with ADHD may be less vulnerable to the impact of witnessing violence on their own risk for perpetrating violence. Effective targeting of treatment should be understood within this context.

Understanding the link between alcohol dependence and victimisation risk: Is risk explained by peers or alcohol behaviours?

BACKGROUND: Alcohol dependence is a risk factor for experiencing victimisation, but little is known about how peer and behavioural mechanisms may explain this relationship. AIMS: To test deviant peer association and/or heavy-episodic drinking frequency as mediators between alcohol dependence and risk for being victimised. METHODS: The Pathways to Desistance data were analysed. Generalised structural equation modelling was used to determine whether either or both of the hypothesised pathways significantly mediated the relationship between alcohol dependence and victimisation. RESULTS: Alcohol dependence at recruitment (age 14-17) was associated with higher odds of being a victim of some form of violence in Wave 3 (age x-y). This relationship was significantly mediated by deviant peer association but not heavy-episodic drinking frequency between Waves 2 and 3. CONCLUSIONS: These findings add knowledge about the mechanism of a link between early alcohol dependence and later violent victimisation among young offenders. They suggest that more focus on reducing delinquent peer association, or reducing its impact, is crucial to reducing further harms to these young people, in turn possibly affecting continuing substance use and reoffending risks. Peer mentoring programmes help to provide prosocial modelling and reduce deviant peer ties in some circumstances, and these findings suggest that the next step should be their evaluation specifically among justice-involved young people with alcohol dependence. Providing additional funding and/or opportunities for involvement in such mentoring programmes may help to reduce the public health and financial costs associated with alcohol dependence in the juvenile justice system.

Antisocial personality disorder as a predictor of polydrug use: a longitudinal study of the dual mediating roles of deviant peer association and self-control among juvenile offenders.

BACKGROUND: Antisocial personality disorder (APD) has been linked to increased risk for polydrug use (PU). However, there is a dearth of research focusing on the mechanisms underlying this risk. AIMS: To examine the relationship between APD and PU; to test for the mediating effects of deviant peer association (DVA) and self-control in this relationship; to determine if the magnitudes of observed mediation effects are equivalent. METHODS: The Pathways to Desistance data were analyzed. Generalized structural equation modeling tested for direct and mediating relationships. Mediation effect equivalence was tested using a Clogg Z test. RESULTS: Antisocial personality disorder was associated with increased drug use heterogeneity (coefficient = 0.479; CI = 0.107-0.851). This was significantly mediated by self-control and DVA. The magnitude of the mediation was significantly stronger for the self-control path (self-control coefficient = 0.233; CI = 0.044-0.422; DVA coefficient = 0.134; CI = 0.028-0.241). CONCLUSION: While both self-control and DVA were found to be important for explaining PU in APD, it may be beneficial to focus on self-control to address this problem.

Major depressive disorder as a moderator of the relationship between heavy-episodic drinking and anxiety symptoms.

BACKGROUND: Major depressive disorder and heavy-episodic drinking are risk factors for the development of anxiety. However, the interactive effect between these constructs for predicting anxiety symptoms remains understudied. AIMS: This study sought to examine how major depressive disorder moderates the relationship between heavy-episodic drinking frequency and the development of anxiety symptoms in adolescence and emerging adulthood among a sample of justice-involved youth, with expectations that the salience of this relationship may differ based on life-course stage. METHODS: Several waves of the Pathways to Desistance study were analyzed. Poisson regression with robust standard errors was used to test the direct and interactive effects of major depressive disorder and heavy-episodic drinking frequency on anxiety symptoms at follow-up in adolescence and emerging adulthood separately. RESULTS: Results indicated that there was a significant negative interaction between major depressive disorder and heavy-episodic drinking frequency for predicting anxiety scores in both adolescence and emerging adulthood, though the results for adolescence were more robust. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest youth without major depressive disorder that engage in heavy-episodic drinking may be a priority population for treating anxiety issues, but that ceiling effects may limit the impact of the behavior on anxiety on youth with major depressive disorder.

Exposure to Violence Variety as a Risk Factor for Cigarette Smoking: Relevance of Sensation-Seeking and Impulsivity as Mediators.

BACKGROUND: Prior research has indicated that exposure to violence is a risk factor associated with cigarette smoking. However, the relevance of variety of exposure for predicting this outcome has remained underexplored. This is problematic, as increased variety of exposure may represent a measure of severity of trauma exposure with less recall bias than other measures. Further, related constructs of sensation-seeking and impulsivity have yet to be investigated as mediators of this relationship. It is predicted that increased variety of exposure to violence results in dysfunctional variation in these constructs, leading to increased daily cigarette use. METHODS: The present study utilizes data from the first three waves of the Pathways to Desistance study to examine these relationships. Generalized structural equation modeling is used to identify direct and indirect effects of interest. A bootstrap resampling process was used to compute normalized standard errors so that indirect effects were not biased. RESULTS: Results indicated that lifetime exposure to violence variety prior to baseline predicted increased daily cigarette use at follow-up. Neither sensation-seeking nor impulsivity were significant mediators when both constructs were included in the model, but impulsivity emerged as a significant mediator when separate mediation models were estimated for each construct. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate the potential utility of screening for variety of exposure to violence to determine adolescents who may be at-risk for high frequency cigarette smoking. Programming focused on impulsivity may play a role in addressing cigarette smoking issues stemming from exposure to violence.

Presentation of Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms in Adulthood: Development of Depression Mediates the Effect of Childhood and Adolescent Exposure to Violence.

ABSTRACT: Past research has linked the development of borderline personality disorder to earlier exposure to violence. However, the causal link by which this relationship exists has not yet been fully identified. The present study sought to examine how exposure to violence predicted heterogeneity in the development of depressive systems and results in the arousal of borderline personality disorder symptoms in adulthood. The Pathways to Desistance data were used in the analyses. This data set consisted of the responses of 1354 juvenile offenders followed across 7 years. Group-based trajectory modeling was used to identify latent trajectories of depressive symptoms. Ordinary least squares regression was used to model covariate effects on borderline personality disorder symptoms in adulthood. Results indicated that a three-group depression trajectory model best fit the data. Direct victimization early in life was associated with increased borderline personality disorder symptoms in adulthood. When trajectory group assignment was accounted for in the model, the relationship between direct victimization and borderline personality disorder symptoms was attenuated by around 30%. Implications are discussed.

The relevance of post-traumatic stress disorder as a moderator of the relationship between experience of violent or sexual assault and opioid use in adulthood.

BACKGROUND: Past research has indicated that individuals suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may demonstrate increased sensitivity to stress exposure following onset of the disorder. Thus, having PTSD may amplify the effects of subsequent stressors. This has been found to be relevant in some forms of substance use but relationships between PTSD, new stress and opioid use specifically has not been examined. AIMS: To explore interactions between PTSD, new victimisation and opioid use and test the hypothesis that PTSD will moderate any victimisation-opioid use relationship. METHODS: The pathways to desistance data were used in analyses. A series of logistic regression models were used to test both direct effects of victimisation and PTSD on opioid use and interactions between them. RESULTS: The sample was comprised of a male majority (male N = 1,170; female N = 184). Results indicated that neither PTSD nor victimisation were significant predictors of opioid use. PTSD was found to moderate the relationship between victimisation and opioid use in the hypothesised manner. CONCLUSIONS: There may be clinical implications of these results relating to both inpatient and outpatient treatment. Regular trauma screening, additional victims' services and trauma-informed care may help to reduce the risk of opioid use among individuals suffering from PTSD.

Binge Drinking in Adolescence and Early Adulthood: The Salience of PTSD and PTSD-Linked Strain Sensitivity from a Developmental Perspective.

Background: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been identified by past research as a risk factor for substance use. Further, past research has indicated that individuals with PTSD may demonstrate an increased sensitivity to strain. Despite this, no study has examined the relevance of these processes for understanding binge drinking behaviors from a developmental perspective. Purpose/Objectives: Understand the relevance of PTSD-linked strain sensitivity for predicting binge drinking in adolescence and adulthood. Methods: This study utilizes data from the Pathways to Desistance study, comprising the responses of 1354 juvenile offenders across seven years following an adjudication. A series of ordinal logistic regression models estimated these effects in adolescence and early adulthood. Results: Results indicate that adolescent PTSD interacted with witnessed violence to produce lower frequency binge drinking. This effect was non-significant in early adulthood. Conclusions/Importance: These findings indicate that adolescent PTSD-sufferers demonstrate diminished sensitivity to witnessed violence. This may have to do with adolescence social processes.

Early Life Poly-Victimization and Differential Development of Anxiety as Risk Factors for the Continuity of Substance Dependence in Adulthood.

Background: Abuse of psychoactive substances may lead to physical and/or physiological dependence on said substances. While a great deal of research has focused on risk factors predicting onset, there has been little research focused on risk factors influencing continued dependence on substances in adulthood following onset early in life. Purpose/Objectives: The present study examined poly-victimization and developmental patterns of anxiety as predictors of continued substance dependence problems. Methods: The Pathways to Desistance data were used in the present study. A subset of this sample was used in analyses comprising 261 juvenile offenders who reported lifetime drug and/or alcohol dependence at baseline. Firth logistic regression was used to estimate the impact that covariates had on the odds that individuals in this subsample had continued substance dependence in adulthood. Results: Results indicated that increased poly-victimization score pertaining to direct victimization at baseline was associated with increased odds of continued substance dependence problems in adulthood. Further, presentation of high and chronic anxiety symptomatology during adolescence was associated with increased risk for continued dependence. Conclusions/Importance: Drug dependent adolescents who demonstrate chronic anxiety and/or have experienced polyvictimization are at-risk for continuity of dependent in adulthood. Youth should be screened for these issues and targeted with treatment.

The Impact of PTSD-Linked Strain Sensitivity on Violent Offending: Differences in Effects During Adolescence Versus Early Adulthood.

OBJECTIVES: Investigate the relevance of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-linked strain sensitivity associated with exposure to violence for predicting violence outcomes among juvenile offenders during adolescence and early adulthood. METHODS: This study uses the Pathways to Desistance data and to test relevant relationships. Two series of negative binomial regression models were estimated to test hypotheses, one corresponding to each period of the life course. RESULTS: Results indicated that witnessed violence interacted with PTSD status in adolescence, indicating that individuals afflicted with PTSD demonstrated heightened sensitivity to this strain, manifested in increased violent offending. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate that witnessed violence may act as a trigger during adolescence, resulting in juvenile offenders with PTSD responding with violence. This may have treatment implications for individuals suffering from PTSD.

Developmental Trajectories of Opioid Use Among Juvenile Offenders: An Epidemiological Examination of Group Characteristics and Criminological Risk Factors.

AIMS: Investigate patterns of change and continuity in opioid use among juvenile offenders during adolescence and early adulthood. Identify demographic characteristics of trajectory groups of opioid users. Examine the relevance of risk factors for predicting assignment to opioid use trajectory groups. METHODS: The Pathways to Desistance sample, consisting of longitudinal data of 1,134 juvenile offenders, was utilized in analyses. Using group-based trajectory modeling, patterns of opioid use were identified. χ2 tests provide information about the significant differences in gender, race, and socioeconomic status composition among the subgroups. Multinomial logistic regression were estimated to identify the relevance of risk factors for predicting assignment to subgroups. RESULTS: A four-group model best fit the opioid use data (Abstaining, Low Accelerating, High Accelerating, Desisting). Race significantly delineated group membership at the bivariate level. Risk factor analysis indicated that lower self-control assessed at baseline predicted elevated risk of assignment to the Low Accelerating and High Accelerating groups. Higher frequency of marijuana use at baseline and a lifetime history of having experienced victimization was associated with assignment to the Desisting group. CONCLUSIONS: Chronic opioid use exists at elevated prevalence among juvenile offenders. Adolescents in the criminal justice system with low self-control should be targeted for intervention.

Heterogeneity in the Development of Drug Use Versatility: Risk Factors for Polydrug Use throughout the Life-Course.

BACKGROUND: Polydrug use is a major public health issue associated with numerous undesirable physical and mental health outcomes. While past research has identified risk factors for polydrug use and elevated drug use variety, there has yet to be any research which seeks to examine this phenomenon from a developmental perspective. There also has yet to be any research which examines the impact of risk factors for predicting differential development. OBJECTIVES: Identify developmental subgroups of polydrug use. Identify risk factors predicting heterogeneity in development. METHODS: The Pathways to Desistance data were used in this research. The present study used group-based trajectory modeling to elucidate general developmental patterns of drug use variety and sought to identify risk factors predicting the heterogeneity in the development of this outcome using multinomial logistic regression among a sample of juvenile offenders. RESULTS: A six group model best fit the drug use variety count data. Several risk factors were identified which predicted assignment to the most problematic developmental subgroup, including: low self-control, low religiosity, and history of victimization at baseline. White participants were more likely to engage in any level of drug use. Conclusions/Importance: These results indicate that juvenile offenders are at-risk for chronic issues with polydrug use and more general engagement in polydrug use. Public health and criminal justice professionals should work together to develop and implement psychosocial interventions for targeting risk factors associated with accelerating and chronic polydrug use.

The development of anxiety symptomatology among juvenile offenders: the roles of maternal substance abuse and unemployment.

This research examined the development of anxiety across adolescence and early adulthood among a sample of juvenile offenders comprising males and females. In addition, despite the understanding of maternal substance abuse and maternal unemployment as risk factors predicting development of anxiety, this research examined the interaction between these two characteristics for doing so. Analyses used group-based trajectory modelling to provide descriptive representation of general developmental patterns of anxiety. Next, a series of multinomial logistic regression models were estimated to examine the effects of baseline covariates on the relative risk of assignment to the elucidated trajectory groups. A three-group model best fit the data, comprising low, moderate, and high anxiety trajectory groups. Results from the regression models indicate that the interaction between maternal unemployment and maternal substance abuse history significantly increased the risk of assignment to the high anxiety group.

Neighborhood disorder as a predictor of perceptions of firearm access: Examining peers effects.

OBJECTIVE: This study sought to examine the relationship between neighborhood disorder and perceptions of gun access. Further, this study focused on determining whether or not antisocial peer affiliation mediates this relationship. METHODS: The Pathways to Desistance data were analyzed. This is an 11-wave longitudinal study following 1,354 justice-involved youth across seven years post-adjudication. Generalized structural equation modeling was used to assess direct and indirect relationships of interest. RESULTS: Greater levels of neighborhood disorder were associated with increased perceptions of access to guns in the community. Affiliation with antisocial peers significantly mediated this relationship, accounting for about 15 % of this relationship. CONCLUSIONS: Affiliation with antisocial peers may be greater in disordered neighborhoods and they may facilitate access to guns for adolescents living in such communities. Mentoring programs for adolescents living in disordered communities may have some capacity for attenuating this relationship.

Major Depressive Disorder as a Driver of Dual Systems Model Development During Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood Among Justice-Involved Youth: Is Salience Age-Graded?

The dual systems model is a psychological framework centered on differential development of sensation-seeking and impulse control during adolescence and emerging adulthood with implications for understanding antisocial behavior. However, there is a dearth of research which has examined mental illness as a driver of differential development of these constructs. This study examined major depressive disorder as a risk factor for elevated sensation-seeking and diminished impulse control and tested to determine whether the salience differed by age. The Pathways to Desistance data were analyzed. Mixed effects models examined the direct effect of major depressive disorder on dual systems outcomes and test for moderation by age. Findings indicated that major depressive disorder at baseline was associated with increased sensation-seeking and diminished impulse control. Relationships did not differ in salience based on age. Results suggest that treatment effective for addressing depression may have relevance for mitigating the impact of the disorder on cognition.

The Effects of Neighborhood Disorder on Polydrug Use: Examining Depressive Symptoms and Deviant Peer Association as Mediating Mechanisms.

Neighborhood disorder is a risk factor for substance use, but research is limited with regard to the effect of such disorder on polydrug use. Further, research on potential mechanisms underlying this relationship is similarly limited. The current study examined the direct effect of neighborhood disorder on drug use variety and examined deviant peer association and depressive symptoms as mediators among a sample of justice-involved youth. The first three waves of the Pathways to Desistance study were analyzed. Generalized structural equation modeling was used to test for direct and indirect effects of interest. A bootstrap resampling process was used to compute standard errors and significance of hypothesized mediation effects. Findings indicated that greater levels of neighborhood disorder were associated with increased drug use variety. This effect was attenuated by 15% when mediating pathways were included in the model. Only deviant peer association significantly mediated this relationship and accounted for the majority of the total mediating effect. These results indicated that justice-involved youth exposed to neighborhood disorder are at elevated risk for polydrug use and that increased deviant peer association helps to explain this relationship.

Linking Historical Discriminatory Housing Patterns to the Contemporary Alcohol Environment.

Research on alcohol outlet density consistently shows greater disparities in exposure in disinvested communities. Likewise, structural racism via discriminatory housing practices has created many of the issues that beset contemporary disinvested neighborhoods. Little work, however, has examined the relationship between housing practices and alcohol outlet disparities. The central premise of our work is that these discriminatory and inequitable practices create distinctions in the alcohol environment, and that such disparities have implications for work on alcohol policy. Here we link alcohol outlet density with a spatial database examining redlining, blockbusting, and gentrification in Baltimore, Maryland, and Flint, Michigan (two cities with common experiences of urban disinvestment over the last 50 years). Standard measures are used to account for the impacts of neighborhood racial, socioeconomic, and housing composition in a multilevel model. Our findings highlight that gentrification and redlining are strongly associated with alcohol outlet density, while blockbusting is not. Gentrification and redlining also frequently co-occur in inner-urban areas, while the more suburban phenomenon of blockbusting rarely overlaps with either. These findings further contextualize nascent work on structural racism in housing that illustrates important disparities along the lines of these distinct practices. Future work should consider how legacy impacts of discriminatory housing patterns impact our communities today.