3 - (IOP 7) Pathways to Delinquency Among Latent Classes of Adolescents with Different Combinations of Adverse Childhood Experiences

Adolescents who have experienced adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as abuse and neglect are at increased risk for engaging in delinquency. The ecological developmental model identifies various risk (e.g., deviant peer affiliation, community violence exposure) and protective processes (e.g., parental knowledge of adolescents, positive peer affiliation, involvement sports teams, school clubs, etc.) that contribute to involvement in delinquency. ACEs frequently co-occur and their impact may be cumulative and/or synergistic. Person-centered analyses account for the combined effects of ACEs on adolescent development. The present study used Latent Class Analysis with prospective data to identify groups of adolescents with different combinations of ACEs and the pathways to delinquency through parental knowledge, positive and deviant peer affiliation, community violence exposure and involvement in extracurricular activities.

Participants were 1,354 adolescents and their caregivers who participated in the Longitudinal Studies of Childhood Abuse and Neglect from when youth were born until they were 16 years old. Information about youths’ ACEs was collected from prospective youth and parent reports, as well as Child Protective Services records from birth until youth participants were 14 years old. Parents reported about their adolescents’ exposure to past-year community violence, aggressive and delinquent behaviors, and knowledge of their adolescents’ behavior and whereabouts when adolescents were 14 years old. Adolescents reported positive and deviant peer behaviors and extracurricular activity involvement when they were 14 years old, and delinquency when they were 16 years old.

A Latent Class Analysis supported a 4-class solution characterized by (1) relatively low likelihood of all ACEs (Low ACEs Class; N = 464; 35%); (2) high likelihood of all ACEs (High ACEs Class; N = 460; 34%); (3) high likelihood of neglect and caregiver substance use (Neglect Class; N = 299; 22%); and (4) high likelihood of emotional maltreatment, physical and sexual abuse (Abuse Class; N = 131; 10%). Adolescents in the Abuse Class had higher delinquency, IRR = 1.78 [1.07, 1.31], than youth in the Low ACEs Class. Adolescents in the Abuse, b = -.47 [-.75, -.22], and High ACEs Classes, b = -.3 [-.46, -.16], had lower parental knowledge than adolescents in the Low ACEs Class; and lower parental knowledge was in turn associated with more delinquency, IRR = .83 [.72, .93]. Adolescents in the High ACEs Class had more deviant peer affiliation than adolescents in the Low ACEs Class, b = .24 [.06, .4] and adolescents exposed to community violence also had more deviant peer affiliation, b = .13 [.03, .23]; and more deviant peer affiliation was in turn associated with more delinquency, IRR = 1.49 [1.33, 1.67].

Findings highlight the importance of promoting parental knowledge about adolescents’ activities and limiting affiliation with deviant peers, especially among adolescents who have experienced many ACEs (e.g., emotional, physical, and sexual abuse) and community violence exposure. Interventions that promote parent-adolescent communication and awareness of peers and activities are crucial.