Comparing cumulative index and factor analytic approaches to measuring maltreatment in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health.

Child maltreatment is a complex and multifaceted construct in need of advanced statistical techniques to improve its measurement. The current study compared the predictive utility of a cumulative index to a factor analytic approach for constructing a measure of maltreatment. Data were from Waves III and IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Wave III: n = 14,800; Wave IV: n = 12,288).

Pathways from Childhood Adversity to Problem Behaviors in Young Adulthood: The Mediating Role of Adolescents' Future Expectations.

Adverse childhood experiences and pessimistic future expectations about college attendance or mortality are established risk factors for problem behaviors among youth. Data were from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 14,800; 49 % female). Participants were 11-17-years-old at baseline and 24-32-years-old at outcome.