The latent growth model (LGM) is a popular tool in the social and behavioral sciences to study development processes of continuous and discrete outcome variables. A special case are frequency measurements of behaviors or events, such as doctor visits per month or crimes committed per year. Probability distributions for such outcomes include the…

This study examined the relationships among home-based parental involvement, study habits, and academic achievement using structural equation modeling. The sample consisted of 566 eighth-grade students in Taiwan, and their mean age was 14.35. The data for home-based parental involvement and study habits was collected in the "first survey…

Background: Modelling academic self-concept through second-order factors or bifactor structures is an important issue with substantive and practical implications; besides, the bifactor model has not been analysed with a Chinese sample and cross-cultural studies in the academic self-concept are scarce. Likewise, latent structure validity evidence…

Background: Based on learned helplessness theory and conservation of resources theory, the present study explores the role of schools' social environments (i.e., school belonging, school exclusion, and teacher-student relationships) as potential buffers and amplifiers in students' development of learned helplessness during adolescence. Aims: We…

Studying development processes, as they unfold over time, involves collecting repeated measures from individuals and modeling the changes over time. One methodological challenge in this type of longitudinal data is separating retest effects, due to the repeated assessments, from developmental processes such as maturation or age. In this article,…

Background: Adolescent mental illness is of increasing concern, with prevalence increasing especially in females in the United Kingdom. While service-related barriers can deter help-seeking, the role of family support and engagement in family activities, and attitudes towards seeking help from a doctor has received little attention. Studies…

Structural equation modelling (SEM) with longitudinal survey data was used to test a proposed developmental model of the association of family income (with children aged 6-9) to parent behaviours (for children at 10 years of age) and adolescent cognitive achievement and behaviour problems (at age 15). Data from the Child Development Supplement and…