Longitudinal academic outcomes predicted by early adolescents’ subjective well-being, psychopathology, and mental health status yielded from a dual factor model

Abstract

This longitudinal investigation examined the utility of subjective well-being (SWB) and psychopathology in predicting subsequent academic achievement and in-school behavior in 300 middle school students. Initial SWB predicted students’ grade point averages (GPAs) 1 year later, initial internalizing psychopathology predicted absences 1 year later, and initial externalizing psychopathology predicted grades, absences, and discipline problems 1 year later. Students’ grades and attendance across time varied as a function of mental health group yielded from a dual factor model. Specifically, students in the troubled mental health group declined at a significantly faster rate on GPAs than youth without psychopathology. In contrast, students in the symptomatic but content group were not significantly different from peers with low psychopathology. At Time 2, the best attendance, grades, and math skills were found among students who had both average/high SWB and low psychopathology 1 year earlier, supporting the long-term utility of complete mental health.