Co-Occurring Mental Health Symptoms in Urban Adolescents: Comorbidity Profiles and Correlates

Abstract

ABSTRACT Objective To identify subgroups of urban youth based on their self- and teacher-reported mental health symptoms, and to explore characteristics of these subgroups. Methods Cross-sectional data from 426 eighth-grade students (Mage = 13.22 years; 70.1% Black/African American; 58.7% female) across 20 Baltimore City public schools were analyzed using latent profile analysis and latent regressions. Variables for latent profile analysis included self-reported symptoms (i.e., anxiety, depression, trauma, interpersonal issues, social problems, and behavioral dysfunction) and teacher-reported symptoms (i.e., externalizing, internalizing, and problems in social and emotional competence). Regressions used profile membership to predict trauma exposure, coping mechanisms, and substance use. Results A 3-profile solution was found from the latent profile analysis. The profile with high student- and teacher-reported symptoms had more trauma exposures, greater use of maladaptive coping mechanisms, and higher substance use. Conclusions The current study may help in the identification of urban youth who are at risk of developing multiple co-occurring psychological disorders to target for prevention efforts.