Selection and socialization have been implicated in friendship homophily, but the relative contributions of each are difficult to measure simultaneously because of the nonindependent nature of the data. To address this problem, the authors applied a multiple-groups longitudinal actor-partner interdependence model (D. A. Kashy & D. A. Kenny,…

Analyzing problem-behavior trajectories can be difficult. The data are generally categorical and often quite skewed, violating distributional assumptions of standard normal-theory statistical models. In this article, the authors present several currently available modeling options, all of which make appropriate distributional assumptions for the…

Lesbians, gays, and bisexuals (LGBs) are at increased risk for alcohol use during young adulthood, but the mechanisms remain inadequately understood. The aim of the present study was to examine the trajectories and determinants of alcohol use among LGB young adults who were sampled prospectively. The sample included 111 LGB individuals (47 women…

This study tested whether pro-alcohol peer influences and prosocial involvement account for increases in drinking during the transition into emerging adulthood and whether these mechanisms differ depending on college attendance and/or moving away from home. The authors used structural equation modeling of prospective data from 825 young men and…

The purpose of this study was to test a conceptual model predicting children's externalizing behavior problems in kindergarten in a sample of children with alcoholic (n = 130) and nonalcoholic (n = 97) parents. The model examined the role of parents' alcohol diagnoses, depression, and antisocial behavior at 12-18 months of child age in predicting…

Cross-sectional research suggests that peer influence has a moderate to strong impact on adolescent risk behavior. Such estimates may be inflated owing to third-variable confounds representing either friendship selection effects or the operation of parallel events. Approximately 1,700 peer dyads in Grades 7 to 11 were studied over a 1-year period…

Examined the extent to which risk factors for concurrent binge drinking in adolescence can predict changes during transition to young adulthood. Found that being male, possessing low self-efficacy, and drinking primarily "to get drunk" were unconditional risk factors for increased binge drinking over time. Other adolescent risk factors…