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Future Expectations Among Adolescents: A Latent Class Analysis
Author(s) -
Sipsma Heather L.,
Ickovics Jeannette R.,
Lin Haiqun,
Kershaw Trace S.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
american journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.113
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1573-2770
pISSN - 0091-0562
DOI - 10.1007/s10464-011-9487-1
Subject(s) - latent class model , health psychology , psychology , juvenile delinquency , covariate , multinomial logistic regression , adolescent health , developmental psychology , regression analysis , class (philosophy) , social psychology , monitoring the future , econometrics , public health , substance abuse , medicine , economics , statistics , mathematics , nursing , artificial intelligence , psychiatry , computer science
Future expectations have been important predictors of adolescent development and behavior. Its measurement, however, has largely focused on single dimensions and misses potentially important components. This analysis investigates whether an empirically‐driven, multidimensional approach to conceptualizing future expectations can substantively contribute to our understanding of adolescent risk behavior. We use data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 to derive subpopulations of adolescents based on their future expectations with latent class analysis. Multinomial regression then determines which covariates from Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory are associated with class membership. After modeling these covariates, we examine whether future expectations is associated with delinquency, substance use, and sexual experience. Our analysis suggests the emergence of four distinct classes labeled the Student Expectations, Student/Drinking Expectations, Victim Expectations, and Drinking/Arrest Expectations classes according to their indicator profiles. These classes differ with respect to covariates associated with membership; furthermore, they are all statistically and differentially associated with at least one adolescent risk behavior. This analysis demonstrates the additional benefit derived from using this multidimensional approach for studying future expectations. Further research is needed to investigate its stability and role in predicting adolescent risk behavior over time.