Examining Patterns of Depressive Symptoms Among Black Youth in Economically Disinvested Urban Communities: A Latent Class Analysis.

Abstract

The current study used a person-centered analytic approach to identify distinct classes of depressive symptoms among Black adolescents in under-resourced, urban communities and examined demographic and contextual factors related to class differences. Participants were 403 Black adolescents (ages 11-15, 54% female) who completed self-report surveys. Latent class analysis identified three depressive symptom classes: A Moderate Anhedonia/Mild Dysphoric Mood class endorsing moderate affective symptoms with lower cognitive and somatic symptoms; a High Cognitive-Affective-Somatic class endorsing high cognitive, affective, and somatic symptoms; and a Mild Somatic Complaints class with moderate endorsement of somatic symptoms and lower cognitive and affective symptoms. Girls were more likely to be in the High Cognitive-Affective-Somatic class and the Mild Somatic Complaints than the Moderate Anhedonia/Mild Dysphoric Mood class. Youth with fathers who had higher levels of schooling were more likely to be in the High Cognitive-Affective-Somatic class than both the Moderate Anhedonia/Mild Dysphoric Mood and Somatic Complaints classes. Additionally, youth with more community violence exposure were more likely to be in the High Cognitive-Affective-Somatic class than the Moderate Anhedonia/Mild Dysphoric Mood, whereas youth with lower levels of community violence exposure were more likely to be in the Mild Somatic Complaints class than both the Moderate Anhedonia/Mild Dysphoric Mood and High Cognitive-Affective-Somatic classes. Finally, youth with more peer and family support were more likely to be in the Mild Somatic Complaints class than the High Cognitive-Affective-Somatic class. These findings highlight the heterogeneity of depressive symptom expression among Black adolescents and the importance of sociocultural considerations in clinical practice.