Although aggressive-disruptive behaviors at school entry signal increased risk for the early initiation of sexual activity, tobacco, and alcohol/drug use, not all aggressive children go on to develop these problems in early adolescence. Given the potential for synergistic risk, developmental research designed to understand heterogeneity in the risk profiles that emerge among children with early-starting conduct problems is needed. This kind of research requires a person-centered framework in which youth are classified into groups based on the presence of problem behaviors (Lanza et al. 2007).
