Unique patterns of childhood adversity and associated clinical and behavioral functioning in minority youth entering a residential program.

BACKGROUND

Youth in residential care are highly prone to childhood adversity (CA) and specific patterns of CA are uniquely associated with distinct clinical and behavioral functioning. Few studies have examined how these associations may differ in minority youth.

OBJECTIVE

We explore patterns of CA in Black and Hispanic/Latinx youth entering residential care. We also examine the association between these patterns and key indicators of clinical and behavioral functioning, including emotional problems, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, prosocial behavior, peer problems, and trauma symptoms.

PARTICIPANTS AND

SETTING

534 Black youth (Mean Age = 15.78, SD = 1.42; 73 % male) and 257 Hispanic/Latinx youth (Mean Age = 15.59, SD = 1.61; 67 % male) in a residential program.

METHODS

Latent class analysis was used on archival data to identify patterns of CA and examine their association with clinical and behavioral functioning.

RESULTS

Five patterns of CA exposure were identified in Black youth and four patterns were identified in Hispanic/Latinx youth. While both groups had "high" and "low" patterns, the composition of these patterns varied between the groups and was associated with different clinical and behavioral functioning.

CONCLUSIONS

This study highlights the importance of considering youth's cultural and ethnic/racial background when examining CA exposure. Youth may be prone to patterns of CA and the implications of these patterns are unique depending on their ethnicity/race. Furthermore, commonly used CA assessments, e.g., those based on the original ACEs study, may not adequately capture the experience of youth from all ethnic/racial groups.