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Latent Classes of Adverse and Positive Childhood Experiences and Associations With Depression Among Racially/Ethnically Minoritized Adolescents

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Child & Family Social Work

Published online on

Abstract

["Child &Family Social Work, Volume 31, Issue 3, Page 1485-1499, August 2026. ", "\nABSTRACT\nAdverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are risk factors for adolescent depression, and positive childhood experiences (PCEs) are protective factors. It remains unclear how ACEs and PCEs cluster and predict depression in racially/ethnically minoritized adolescents. Our study aims to examine the subgroups of ACEs and PCEs in the family, school and neighbourhood contexts and their effects on the depression of racially/ethnically minoritized adolescents. We used six‐wave longitudinal data of 1491 racially/ethnically minoritized adolescents from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study. Data were collected at childbirth and ages 1, 3, 5, 9 and 15 years. We ran descriptive analyses to understand the prevalence of ACEs, PCEs and depression among racially/ethnically minoritized adolescents. We conducted latent class analyses with ACEs and PCE indicators and linear regression analysis using the latent classes to predict adolescent depression. Our study revealed four ACE classes (i.e., Multiple Low Risks, Child Neglect, Vulnerable Parents and Multiple High Risks) and three PCE profiles (i.e., Multiple PCEs, Low School Connectedness and Low Peer Support). Both ACE classes and PCE profiles predicted adolescent depression. Findings highlight understanding the subgroups of childhood experiences across contexts to address the mental health of racially/ethnically minoritized adolescents.\n"]