A group of 115 fifth- and sixth-grade Latino students were surveyed at the beginning and the end of the school year before their transition to middle or junior-high school about their engagement in antisocial behaviors and about individual, social, and behavioral protective factors. The best predictors of decreases in antisocial behavior for these students, above and beyond variance for initial ratings and gender, were student perceptions of social support, parent supervision, and classroom participation. The importance of keeping students engaged in school academic work as a protection against antisocial behavior is emphasized as well as the need to help students gain skills necessary to access support for this academic work.

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The characteristics of 128 youth with emotional and behavioral disorders referred to a system of care were investigated according to agency referral, behavioral and emotional issues, and risk factors. The referral process in this system of care was unique, with each agency referring youth deemed to need multiagency services. The primary analysis used a two-step clustering procedure to examine characteristic profiles, and results produced evidence of four types of referral profiles: Troubled, Troubling. Troubled and Troubling, and At Risk. It was found that youth with various impairments and corresponding needs were referred by different agencies (e.g., troubling youth were most likely to be referred by juvenile probation), but all agencies referred youth across the four clusters. The results of this study are examined with respect to the long-standing policy debate regarding which youth with emotional and behavioral disorders should be given priority to receive services. Implications about evaluating outcomes in systems of care are also discussed.

Fifth and sixth grade students from a Latino community who were characterized as aggressive and acting out by their classroom teachers were organized into two groups: those rated by teachers as high on school learning (classroom academic performance) and those rated as low on school learning. Students were compared on self-ratings of resiliency concepts such as academic and social self-concept, social support, school bonding, and perceived parent supervision. Gender differences were also examined. Students who were rated as aggressive by their teachers, but high on school learning, reported more resiliency indicators including more social support functions fulfilled and higher perceived parental supervision compared to their peers, who were rated low on school learning. A discriminant analysis revealed that perceived parental supervision was the key variable in differentiating these groups. Analyses of differences by gender indicated that girls reported greater classroom readiness than boys. Implications for utilizing resiliency constructs for the early intervention of aggressive behavior in students, as well as the need for involving parents and teachers as sources of social support and supervision are discussed.

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