Abstract BACKGROUND: Several wide-range risk factors are associated with school absenteeism. Complexities arise from the multitude and clustering of these risk factors, challenging recognisability of adolescents at risk. This study aimed to identify usable adolescent profiles based on health behavioural-, psychosocial- and socio-demographic characteristics. School absenteeism outcomes of these profiles were compared. METHODS: A total of 5,889 Dutch secondary school students completed a self-report questionnaire on (1) physical- and mental health, (2) health-related behaviours, and (3) school-, social- and family environments. Profiles of adolescents with similar characteristics were identified using a latent profile analysis. School absenteeism rates and reasons for absenteeism were compared among the identified profiles. RESULTS: Four profiles were identified: profile A (10.1%), profile B (17.3%), profile C (60.7%) and profile D (11.9%). Two profiles (A, D) showed increased absenteeism risks, each displaying a combination of somatic, mental, social, and family-related problems. Profile A was characterized by psychosocial problems, while profile D was characterized by risk-taking behaviors. Both profile A and D were present across all educational levels. CONCLUSIONS: The clustering of health behavioural, psychosocial, family and socioeconomic problems implies that school absenteeism requires a comprehensive approach, focusing not only on individual risk factors but also on the interaction of risk factors in an adolescent’s life. Knowledge about our identified profiles can be used to better recognize adolescents at risk and to tailor current interventions in practice, in order to decrease the burden caused by school absenteeism.
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Korpelshoek et al. (2024) studied this question.
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