Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine predictor variables for juvenile delinquency by exploring the goodness-of-fit between the model and the data comparing African American (N = 912) and Latino (N = 694) adolescents. This dissertation focused on variables related to substance abuse/dependency, psychological/behavior problems, and previous criminal behavior. Findings. Preliminary analysis revealed a strong goodness-of-fit between the hypothesized model and the data. A close fit between the model and the data was found. All factor loadings were assessed and found to load equally into the three latent variables within both African Americans and Latinos. The final model was found invariant between the two ethnic groups, providing critical information for treatment.