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Abstract #165796

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Jichuan Wang, PhD, Russel S. Falck, MA, and Robert G. Carlson, PhD. Community Health, Wright State University, 3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy, Dayton, OH 45435, 937-775-2084, jichuan.wang@wright.edu

In longitudinal studies, latent growth mixture modeling (GMM), which combines the conventional growth model with the latent class growth analysis (LCGA), has been increasingly used to study population heterogeneity in regard to developmental trajectories. The GMM can be further expanded to a more general latent variable modeling framework -- general growth mixture modeling (GGMM), which is the statistical framework used in Mplus (Muthén & Muthén, 1998- 2006). In GGMM, the model identified latent trajectory classes are related to antecedents (e.g., individual background characteristics) and consequence (e.g., distal outcome). This study applies GGMM to study crack cocaine use development among a sample of 430 crack cocaine users in Dayton, Ohio, over an 8-year period. In the study, trajectories of crack cocaine use are modeled and classified into a finite number of latent classes; individual background variables, such as gender, ethnicity, age, education, and early onset of crack cocaine use, are used to predict the class membership; and the latent trajectory classes are used to predict the likelihood of crack cocaine dependence in the end of the 8-year observation period. Mplus is used for modeling.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the presentation, participants (learners) will know

(
• The fundamentals of the general growth mixture modeling (GGMM); (
• The natural history of crack cocaine use in a Midwest city; (
• How to run GGMM using Mplus.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

• Slides (pdf) or Handout