Subtyping of Adolescents with School Refusal Behavior: Exploring Differences Across Profiles in Self-Concept.

Not all adolescents with school attendance problems attribute their behavior to the same causes. Knowing the subtypes of students who reject school and their relationship with new variables, such as self-concept, is an unresolved task. This study aimed to identify different school refusal behavior profiles and to determine whether these profiles differed from each other based on the scores of the eleven dimensions of self-concept (Physical appearance, Physical abilities, Parent relations, Same-sex relations, Opposite-sex relations, Honesty, Emotional stability, Self-esteem, Verbal, Math, and General school). The participants were 1315 Spanish students (57.6% male) aged 12-18 years (M = 15.21; SD = 1.74). The School Refusal Assessment Scale-Revised and the Self-Description Questionnaire II-Short Form were administered. A latent class analysis revealed four school refusal behavior profiles: Moderately High School Refusal Behavior, Moderately Low School Refusal Behavior, Mixed School Refusal Behavior and Non-School Refusal Behavior. The results indicated that the Mixed School Refusal Behavior group was the most maladaptive profile and revealed the lowest mean scores on self-concept. In contrast, Non-School Refusal and Moderately Low School Refusal Behavior groups revealed the highest scores in all dimensions of self-concept. Implications for working toward the prevention of school refusal in students with low self-concept are discussed.

Identifying Risk Profiles of School Refusal Behavior: Differences in Social Anxiety and Family Functioning Among Spanish Adolescents.

School attendance problems negatively affect students' development. This study attempted to identify different school refusal behavior profiles and to examine their relationship with three dimensions of social anxiety (fear of negative evaluation, social avoidance and distress in new situations, and social avoidance and distress that is experienced more generally in the company of peers) and the perception of family functioning. Participants included 1842 Spanish adolescents (53% girls) aged 15-18 years (M = 16.43; SD = 1.05). The School Refusal Assessment Scale-Revised (SRAS-R), the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A), and the Family APGAR Scale (APGAR: Adaptation, Partnership, Growth, Affection, and Resolve) were administered. Latent class analysis revealed four school refusal behavior profiles: non-school refusal behavior, high school refusal behavior, moderately low school refusal behavior, and moderately high school refusal behavior. Analyses of variance (ANOVA) indicated that adolescents' with the profile of high school refusal behavior showed higher scores in all the subscales of social anxiety. In contrast, the non-school refusal behavior group revealed higher scores in the perception of good family functioning, whereas the high school refusal behavior profile obtained the lowest scores in this scale. These findings suggest that students who reject school are at a higher risk of developing social anxiety problems and manifesting family conflicts. These students should be prioritized in order to attend to their needs, promoting self-help to overcome social anxiety and family problems with the purpose of preventing school refusal behaviors.