Abstract
Children who exhibit early-starting conduct problems are more likely than their peers to initiate sexual activity and substance use at an early age, experience pregnancy, and contract a sexually-transmitted disease [STD], placing them at risk for HIV/AIDS. Hence, understanding the development of multi-problem profiles among youth with early-starting conduct problems may benefit the design of prevention programs. In this study, 1,199 kindergarten children (51 % African American; 47 % European American; 69 % boys) over-sampled for high rates of aggressive-disruptive behavior problems were followed through age 18. Latent class analyses (LCA) were used to define developmental profiles associated with the timing of initiation of sexual activity, tobacco and alcohol/drug use and indicators of risky adolescent sex (e.g. pregnancy and STD). Half of the high-risk children were randomized to a multi-component preventive intervention (Fast Track). The intervention did not significantly reduce membership in the classes characterized by risky sex practices. However, additional analyses examined predictors of poor outcomes, which may inform future prevention efforts.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) grants R18 MH48043, R18 MH50951, R18 MH50952, and R18 MH50953. The Center for Substance Abuse Prevention and the National Institute on Drug Abuse also provided support for Fast Track through a memorandum of agreement with the NIMH. This work was also supported in part by Department of Education grant S184U30002, NIMH grants K05MH00797 and K05MH01027, and NIDA grants DA16903, DA017589, and DA015226.
We are grateful for the close collaboration of the Durham Public Schools, the Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, the Bellefonte Area Schools, the Tyrone Area Schools, the Mifflin County Schools, the Highline Public Schools, and the Seattle Public Schools. We greatly appreciate the hard work and dedication of the many staff members who implemented the project, collected the evaluation data, and assisted with data management and analyses. We particularly express appreciation to Brenda Heinrichs for her work on data analyses for this paper.
Disclosure
Drs. Bierman, Coie, Dodge, Greenberg, Lochman, and McMahon are the developers of the Fast Track curriculum and have a publishing agreement with Oxford University Press. Dr. Greenberg is an author on the PATHS curriculum and has a royalty agreement with Channing-Bete, Inc. Dr. Greenberg is a principal in PATHS Training, LLC. Dr. McMahon is a coauthor of Helping the Noncompliant Child and has a royalty agreement with Guilford Publications, Inc.; he is also a member of the Treatments That Work Scientific Advisory Board with Oxford University Press. The other authors have no financial relationships to disclose.
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Members of the Conduct Problems Prevention Research are, in alphabetical order, Karen L. Bierman (Pennsylvania State University), John D. Coie (Duke University), Kenneth A. Dodge (Duke University), Mark Greenberg (Pennsylvania State University), John E. Lochman (University of Alabama), Robert J. McMahon (Simon Fraser University and the Child & Family Research Institute), and Ellen E. Pinderhughes (Tufts University).
Members of the Conduct Problems Prevention Research are, in alphabetical order, Karen L. Bierman (Pennsylvania State University), John D. Coie (Duke University), Kenneth A. Dodge (Duke University), Mark Greenberg (Pennsylvania State University), John E. Lochman (University of Alabama), Robert J. McMahon (Simon Fraser University and the Child & Family Research Institute), and Ellen E. Pinderhughes (Tufts University).
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Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group. Trajectories of Risk for Early Sexual Activity and Early Substance Use in the Fast Track Prevention Program. Prev Sci 15 (Suppl 1), 33–46 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-012-0328-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-012-0328-8