Next, we examined the degree to which each of these kindergarten characteristics were associated with the risk classes. Youth were assigned to their most likely LCA class using posterior probabilities, and ANOVAs with post-hoc (Bonferonni) comparisons were used to identify significant group differences. As shown in Table 6, all of the kindergarten characteristics and eighth grade characteristics studied here (with the exception of kindergarten reading skills for girls) significantly differentiated girls and boys in the preadolescent multi-problem class from youth in the low-risk class. Youth in class 2 (who also had elevated rates of pregnancy and STDs) differed significantly from the low-risk class on all of the kindergarten child and family characteristics (for boys) and in early inattention, lower family SES and lower parental warmth (for girls). Interestingly, however, this group did not differ from the low-risk group on 8th grade measures of pubertal development, depressive symptoms, gang involvement, or deviant friends (for boys), although they had lower rates of school adjustment. Interestingly, youth in Class 3, who engaged in early tobacco and substance use but did not have elevated
