Background: Youth involved in the U.S. child welfare system (CWS) are at risk for mental health problems, including suicidal ideation (SI). However, the relationship between preteen suicidal ideation and academic outcomes has not been considered. Methods: This study uses data from two nationally representative longitudinal surveys of CWS-involved…

Objective: To examine the association between childhood ADHD and lifestyle risk factors (physical inactivity and high fast-food consumption) from adolescence to early adulthood. Methods: This retrospective cohort study used secondary data from Wave I to III of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) in a national…

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people aged 10-34 years old. Limited research has documented extant heterogeneities in suicide across the life course and among diverse sociodemographic groups. There is also limited research on the influences of mental health utilization on suicidal trajectories across the life course. This study…

Criminological literature has examined the potential for gendered pathways of offending, while also recognizing the gendered risk for victimization. General strain theory explicitly recognizes this gendered risk as strains that structure differences in these experiences for males and females. The current article tests the longitudinal risk for…

Sexual and gender minority (SGM) youth experience high rates of victimization leading to health disparities. Community size and community climate are associated with health outcomes among SGM youth; however, we lack studies that include them as covariates alongside victimization to understand their collective impact on health. This study utilized…

Childhood adversities tend to impact development in a cumulative way. However, extant research on childhood adversities has focused on a variable-centered approach to examine the cumulative effect of adversity. Using Latent Class Analysis (LCA) and adopting a pattern-centered approach, the authors investigate how different youth may experience…

Background: Previous research has identified individual and school-level characteristics that are associated with sexual risk-taking, but the impact of school-level mechanisms on sexual risk-taking is not well understood. We examine the aggregated effects that early sex at the school level have on risky sexual behaviors. Methods: We use 3 waves of…

Previous methodological approaches have not been flexible enough to model the heterogeneity of depressive symptoms or to identify variations between prototypical trajectories conditional on risk and protective factors. The current study examined latent class trajectories of depressive symptoms using data from 3,819 respondents of the Adolescent…

Background: Understanding racial differences in teenage fathers' early risk factors and later outcomes is critical to inform programs for teenage fathers as our knowledge base on this population remains limited. Objective: The goal of this study was to assess how teen fathers' characteristics, including family background, delinquency, living…

It is well-known that college students are at an increased risk for alcohol use and binge drinking compared to their same-age peers who are not in college. We use Moffitt's developmental taxonomy, specifically, her discussion of adolescence-limited offending, to contextualize this finding regarding this minor form of deviance. We also incorporate…

All young people have the potential to succeed--to do well academically, socially, and economically. Some young people, though, experience cumulative and chronic adversity along the way--disrupting their opportunities to thrive. Young people have the best chance to realize their potential when communities can intentionally align support with young…

Previous studies find that romantic relationships adversely affect adolescents' psychological well-being, yet none examine the differential effects of adolescent romance for same-race and interracial daters. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), I find that heterosexual adolescents in same-race…

Sexual minority youth are more likely to run away from home or experience homelessness, leaving them at increased risk of victimization and negative health outcomes. In this study, the authors use a developmental perspective that considers both vulnerable beginnings in families and the risky trajectories that follow to explore the connections…

This article examines the relationship between exposure to violence, fear of exposure to violence, and sexual risk among a sample of urban middle school youth. The sample included 911 seventh-grade students who completed self-report surveys. Approximately 20% of the sample reported at least one direct threat or injury with a weapon in the past 3…

Introduction: Based on internal and external assets, the positive youth development approach aims to increase the capacity among adolescents to overcome challenges as they transition to adulthood. Developmental assets have been found to be positively associated with academic achievement, a variety of health promoting behaviors, and improved…