(PS8-97) The Prospective Impact of Perceived Social Support Profiles on Mental Health for Justice-involved Youth

Extant qualitative research highlights the importance of perceived social support for well-being in youth involved the juvenile justice system (JJS), but to date, little research has provided a comprehensive quantitative framework to test the generalizability of these findings. In response, the present study aims to address this gap by examining a large sample of juvenile offenders (N=1,354) over a seven-year period in order to articulate (a) profiles of interpersonal well-being in JJS-involved youth, (b) how these profiles relate to prospective mental health trends, and (c) how identity (i.e., gender, race/ethnicity) and setting (i.e., incarceration vs. community placement) influence the relationship between interpersonal well-being and psychopathology over time. At baseline, 1,354 adjudicated adolescents (Age_M=16.04 years; 86.4% male; 41.4% non-Hispanic Black) completed self-report measures for perceived report from parents, peers, and teachers. Respondents additionally answered questions on measures of depression, anxiety, aggression, and suicidal ideation across 11 time points over 7 years. Latent profile analyses suggested that youth fell into one of five support profiles, labeled: Isolated, Conflicting Support, High Parent Support, Low Parent Support, and Moderate Support. Latent growth curve modeling findings suggested that youth in the Low Parent Support profile were at increased risk for all four prospective mental health outcomes, while adolescents in the High Parent Support profile experienced reduced anxiety and aggression symptoms. Disparities existed across gender and race/ethnicity in the composition of the interpersonal profiles and placement moderated our findings. Despite limitations such as restricted measures for robust subtypes of perceived support and reliance on self-report data, our findings carry important implications for assessing and treating psychopathology in JJS-involved youth. Identification of perceived social support profiles offers a holistic understanding of how interpersonal relationships function as risk or protective factors for internalizing and externalizing symptoms. This insight into the relationship between support profiles and well-being informs tailored mental health interventions, including parent- and family-based treatments, for vulnerable adolescents.