Pathways to Adulthood in Rural America: A Latent Profile and Latent Transition Analysis of Adult Social Roles.

The transition to adulthood is characterized by the assumption of adult social roles, which are well documented in the literature; however, rural young adults remain understudied, especially using nationally representative samples. Therefore, this study analyzed a rural subsample of young adults from Add Health (N = 2562, 63.8% white, 34.2% Black, 50% female) using latent profile and latent transition analyses. Latent profiles at the average ages of 21-22 and 28-29 were identified highlighting transitions in education, work, and family formation. Two profiles previously unidentified in the literature emerged, high school graduates living with parents and prolonged transitioners, characterized by living with parents and limited transitions in romantic relationships and parenthood. Rural young people most likely to be in these profiles were male, Black, and from disadvantaged backgrounds. High school graduates living with parents and prolonged transitioners also had high probabilities of living in a rural area late in the transition to adulthood. Female and Black rural young adults had the highest probabilities of transitioning from the high school graduates living with parents profile to the prolonged transitioners profile. These empirically established role transitions and pathways to adulthood in rural communities can help inform investments, policies, and future research to support rural young adults following varying pathways during the transition to adulthood.

Adolescent risk and protection profiles for violence perpetration: Insights for family- and community-based prevention.

Youth violence continues to be a major developmental and health concern. Preventative resources at individual, family, and community levels may reduce risk, yet the extent to which youth violence perpetration differs by patterns of risk and protective factors remains unknown. Using data from the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (N = 4630; 49% female; Mage = 14.69), we conducted person-centered, latent profile analyses to identify four patterns for risk of violence perpetration among middle and high school youth. Youth in the Low Risk-High Protection profile (37%) had low likelihood of violence perpetration. Youth in the Low Risk-Low Protection profile (4%) were characterized by poor family functioning, low school belonging, and low community protection. These youth had similar odds of violence perpetration as youth in the Moderate Risk-Moderate Protection profile (44%), which were elevated compared to the Low Risk-High Protection profile. Youth in the High Risk-Low Protection profile (15%), which had the highest levels of risk factors and lowest levels of protective factors, had the highest likelihood of violence perpetration. The High Risk-Low Protection profile was expected based on past research, but the emergence of the Low Risk-Low Protection profile is a unique contribution to the research. Findings contribute to the literature by going beyond a cumulative risk model, identifying subgroups with various patterns of risk and protection in the population, and highlighting the importance of selected prevention for subgroups of youth with high risk or challenging family and community environments.

Longitudinal bidirectional relations between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms among Black adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the variation in body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms by weight status and the bi-directional relations between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms by weight status among Black adolescents. METHODS: A sample of 153 Black adolescents aged 12-13 years, either overweight/obese (n = 57, 37%) or healthy weight (n = 96, 63%), were recruited and evaluated three times over two years (T1, T2 and T3). Measured weight and height were converted to age and sex-specific BMI z-score; body dissatisfaction was measured with silhouettes, and depressive symptoms were measured with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-I). Bidirectional relations were assessed with cross-lagged panel analyses, accounting for stability over time and contemporary correlations. RESULTS: Body dissatisfaction was higher among the overweight/obese group than the healthy weight group. No significant differences were found for depressive symptoms by weight status. Among the overweight/obese group, there were bidirectional relations: antecedent body dissatisfaction predicted subsequent depressive symptoms (T1-T2: ß = 0.42, SE = 0.11, p<0.001; T2-T3: ß = 0.36, SE = 0.09, p<0.001) and antecedent depressive symptoms predicted subsequent body dissatisfaction (T1-T2: ß = 0.25, SE = 0.10, p = 0.012; T2-T3: ß = 0.17, SE = 0.08, p = 0.045). Among the healthy weight group, there was no relation in either direction. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated body dissatisfaction among the overweight/obese group supports weight-based stigma as a stressor among Black adolescents. The bidirectional relations between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms among the overweight/obese group support the internalization of thinness idea and negative self-appraisal associated with depressive symptoms. Prevention of both body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms may be mutually beneficial among Black adolescents with overweight/obesity.

Association of Friday School Report Card Release With Saturday Incidence Rates of Agency-Verified Physical Child Abuse.

Importance: Corporal punishment is a leading risk factor for physical abuse. Strong anecdotal evidence from physicians and other professionals working in child protection suggest that punishment-initiated physical abuse for school-aged children increases after release of report cards. However, no empirical examination of this association has occurred. Objective: To examine the temporal association between school report card release and incidence rates (IRs) of physical abuse. Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective study reviewed calls to a state child abuse hotline and school report card release dates across a single academic year in Florida. Data were collected in a 265-day window from September 8, 2015, to May 30, 2016, in the 64 of 67 Florida counties with report card release dates available (16 960 days). Participants included all children aged 5 to 11 years for whom calls were made. A total of 1943 verified cases of physical abuse were reported in the study period in the 64 counties. Data were analyzed from October 2017 through May 2018. Exposures: School report cards release across a single academic year, measured daily by county. Main Outcomes and Measures: Daily counts of calls to a child abuse hotline that later resulted in agency-verified incidents of child physical abuse across a single academic year by county. Results: During the academic year, 167 906 calls came in to the child abuse hotline for children aged 5 to 11 years; 17.8% (n = 29 887) of these calls were suspected incidents of physical abuse, and 2017 (6.7%) of these suspected incidents were later verified as cases of physical abuse before excluding the 3 counties with no release dates available. Among the 1943 cases included in the analysis (58.9% males [n = 1145]; mean [SD] age, 7.69 [1.92] years), calls resulting in verified reports of child physical abuse occurred at a higher rate on Saturdays after a Friday report card release compared with Saturdays that do not follow a Friday report card release (IR ratio, 3.75; 95% CI, 1.21-11.63; P = .02). No significant association of report card release with IRs was found for any other days of the week. Conclusion and Relevance: This association of school report card release and physical abuse appears to illustrate a unique systems-based opportunity for prevention.

Links between pubertal timing, peer influences, and externalizing behaviors among urban students followed through middle school.

PURPOSE: To evaluate underlying mechanisms of the association between early pubertal timing and both aggression and delinquency among a sample of minority males and females from an urban community. METHODS: The association between perceived early pubertal maturation and aggressive or delinquent behaviors for African American and Latino males and females (n = 1366) was examined, as well as pathways between early maturation and these negative outcomes longitudinally across 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. RESULTS: Early maturers reported higher mean levels of both aggression and delinquency at all time points regardless of gender or ethnicity. Associating with delinquent peers in 6th grade fully mediated the association between early maturation and both aggression and delinquency at all time points. Early maturers did not differentially associate with greater numbers of delinquent peers in either 7th or 8th grade. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide valuable information regarding at-risk groups and inform future intervention efforts.