Adolescents' mental health and academic performance are subjects of paramount interest. Previous studies have revealed a strong association between these constructs during school years. However, there is little evidence about the dual-factor model of mental health, which includes a combination of psychological well-being and distress indicators,…

Objective: The current study aimed to elucidate characteristics of co-occurring ADHD and anxiety in a community-based sample of children. Previous work has highlighted the prevalence and associated impairment of each condition alone, but less research has focused on the co-occurrence of these disorders. Method: The present study first sought to…

Background: Sensory processing differences are reported both in children with ADHD and in children with autism. Given the substantial overlap between autism and ADHD, the current study examined which sensory features were uniquely predictive of autistic traits after controlling for ADHD symptoms, age, IQ, and sex in a sample of children and…

The prevalence of student mental health concerns has increased the need for universal mental health screening to promote access to services. Some screeners determine risk status by comparing student scores to norming samples based on age (i.e., combined-gender) or on age and gender (i.e., separate-gender). This study examined scores on the…

A large body of research has reported a positive relation between participation in extracurricular activities (ECA) and improved academic performance, social competence, and school engagement. This study explored the relation between ECA, social competence, and school engagement for students with and at risk of emotional and behavioral disorders…

The novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) originated in December 2019, shifting our familiar way of life and creating a lengthy isolation period to mitigate further transmission. Over time, it has become clear that COVID-19 has exacerbated behavioral, emotional, financial, and physical stressors for many individuals. The impact of the pandemic on youth…

The present study examined Latinx school readiness and 3rd grade student achievement, considering differences based on social categories of gender, race, ethnicity, and home language. The sample included 683 racially diverse children (M[subscript age] = 4.94; SD = 0.57) of Dominican- or Mexican-origin from Spanish-English or Spanish-only…

We report findings from a 40 middle school randomized controlled trial of an adapted version of Coping Power (Lochman & Wells, 2002a) for middle schoolers, called the Early Adolescent Coping Power (EACP) Program (Bradshaw et al., 2019) to determine the impact of EACP on adolescents' mental health outcomes, as indicated by student self-reported…

Although numerous studies have focused on understanding the utility of the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC; Reynolds & Kamphaus, 2015) across multiple populations, many of the studies that focus on the use of this measure with the college population have used the previous edition (BASC-2). Given the rising rates of anxiety and…

Exposure to community adversities and violence can be associated with a cascade of neurocognitive, mental health, and behavioral challenges among urban adolescents. Influenced by the bio-ecological framework, this study examines if problems with executive functioning (EF) exacerbate the relation between exposure to community adversity and violence…

We examined the dynamic interplay of depression symptoms, mattering (i.e., self-evaluation of importance or significance to others), and anti-mattering across four years of development in young adulthood (age 20-23; N = 452) using a cross-lagged panel model (CLPM). Support for a transactional model between anti-mattering and depression symptoms…

This study examined the variance in teacher ratings attributable to teacher, occasion, and child on the original Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC). Teachers rated approximately 1,100 girls (52%) and boys (48%) at four public elementary schools over 3 years. About half of the students were rated twice and about a seventh 3 times.…

Indirect aggression has been associated with antisocial personality traits like Machiavellianism, but there is a lack of evidence on their longitudinal development across adolescence. Therefore, the joint developmental trajectories of adolescent indirect aggression and Machiavellianism across 3 years of high school (Grades 10 to 12) were…

Deception is a common phenomenon in everyday life, yet some people generally lie more than others and some people consider lying more acceptable than others do. Current knowledge about lie acceptability across development or about the individual differences in emotion or personality which shape it is still in an incipient stage. We aimed to expand…

Restricted interests are an established diagnostic symptom of autism spectrum disorder. While there is considerable evidence that these interests have maladaptive consequences, they also provide a range of benefits. This article introduces a new instrument, the Survey of Favorite Interests and Activities, and uses it to examine the nature of…