Neurocognitive profiles of marginalized persons with comorbid substance dependence, viral infection, and psychiatric illness

Individuals living in single-room occupancy (SRO) hotels constitute a marginalized population with exposure to adverse risk factors, including substance use, viral infection, and psychiatric illness. The current study used cluster analysis to identify and describe subgroups of individuals with common profiles of neurocognitive functioning in 249 SRO residents. Results revealed three distinct subgroups. Cluster 1 (n = 59) presented as higher functioning, whereas Cluster 3 (n = 87) exhibited the lowest functioning with a relative strength in decision-making. Conversely, Cluster 2 (n = 103) was characterized by neurocognitive abilities that bisected the performance of the other groups, but with a relative weakness in decision-making. A discriminant function analysis revealed that the neurocognitive variables comprised two dimensions that accounted for between-group variance. Clusters meaningfully differed on several external variables. Overall, this study revealed that neurocognition provides the basis for identifying meaningful subgroups of individuals and may be informative to intervention strategies.