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Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States

PURPOSE: Unaccompanied youth homelessness is a serious concern. Response, however, has been constrained by the absence of credible data on the size and characteristics of the population and reliable means to track youth homelessness over time. We sought to address these gaps. METHODS: Using a nation...

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Autores principales: Morton, Matthew H., Dworsky, Amy, Matjasko, Jennifer L., Curry, Susanna R., Schlueter, David, Chávez, Raúl, Farrell, Anne F.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: 2017
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5826721/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29153445
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.10.006
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author Morton, Matthew H.
Dworsky, Amy
Matjasko, Jennifer L.
Curry, Susanna R.
Schlueter, David
Chávez, Raúl
Farrell, Anne F.
author_facet Morton, Matthew H.
Dworsky, Amy
Matjasko, Jennifer L.
Curry, Susanna R.
Schlueter, David
Chávez, Raúl
Farrell, Anne F.
author_sort Morton, Matthew H.
collection PubMed
description PURPOSE: Unaccompanied youth homelessness is a serious concern. Response, however, has been constrained by the absence of credible data on the size and characteristics of the population and reliable means to track youth homelessness over time. We sought to address these gaps. METHODS: Using a nationally representative phone-based survey (N = 26,161), we solicited household and individual reports on different types of youth homelessness. We collected household reports on adolescents aged 13–17 and young adults aged 18–25, as well as self-reports from young adults aged 18–25. Follow-up interviews with a subsample (n = 150) provided additional information on youth experiences and enabled adjustment for inclusion errors. RESULTS: Over a 12-month period, approximately 3.0% of households with 13- to 17-year-olds reported explicit youth homelessness (including running away or being asked to leave) and 1.3% reported experiences that solely involved couch surfing, resulting in an overall 4.3% household prevalence of any homelessness, broadly defined. For 18- to 25-year-olds, household prevalence estimates were 5.9% for explicitly reported homelessness, 6.6% for couch surfing only, and 12.5% overall. The 12-month population prevalence estimates, available only for 18- to 25-year-olds, were 5.2%, 4.5%, and 9.7%, respectively. Incidence rates were about half as high as prevalence rates. Prevalence rates were similar across rural and nonrural counties. Higher risk of homelessness was observed among young parents; black, Hispanic, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) youth; and those who did not complete high school. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence and incidence of youth homelessness reveal a significant need for prevention and youth-centric systems and services, as well as strategies to address disproportionate risks of certain subpopulations.
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spelling pubmed-58267212018-02-26 Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States Morton, Matthew H. Dworsky, Amy Matjasko, Jennifer L. Curry, Susanna R. Schlueter, David Chávez, Raúl Farrell, Anne F. J Adolesc Health Article PURPOSE: Unaccompanied youth homelessness is a serious concern. Response, however, has been constrained by the absence of credible data on the size and characteristics of the population and reliable means to track youth homelessness over time. We sought to address these gaps. METHODS: Using a nationally representative phone-based survey (N = 26,161), we solicited household and individual reports on different types of youth homelessness. We collected household reports on adolescents aged 13–17 and young adults aged 18–25, as well as self-reports from young adults aged 18–25. Follow-up interviews with a subsample (n = 150) provided additional information on youth experiences and enabled adjustment for inclusion errors. RESULTS: Over a 12-month period, approximately 3.0% of households with 13- to 17-year-olds reported explicit youth homelessness (including running away or being asked to leave) and 1.3% reported experiences that solely involved couch surfing, resulting in an overall 4.3% household prevalence of any homelessness, broadly defined. For 18- to 25-year-olds, household prevalence estimates were 5.9% for explicitly reported homelessness, 6.6% for couch surfing only, and 12.5% overall. The 12-month population prevalence estimates, available only for 18- to 25-year-olds, were 5.2%, 4.5%, and 9.7%, respectively. Incidence rates were about half as high as prevalence rates. Prevalence rates were similar across rural and nonrural counties. Higher risk of homelessness was observed among young parents; black, Hispanic, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) youth; and those who did not complete high school. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence and incidence of youth homelessness reveal a significant need for prevention and youth-centric systems and services, as well as strategies to address disproportionate risks of certain subpopulations. 2017-11-15 2018-01 /pmc/articles/PMC5826721/ /pubmed/29153445 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.10.006 Text en http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Morton, Matthew H.
Dworsky, Amy
Matjasko, Jennifer L.
Curry, Susanna R.
Schlueter, David
Chávez, Raúl
Farrell, Anne F.
Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States
title Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States
title_full Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States
title_fullStr Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States
title_full_unstemmed Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States
title_short Prevalence and Correlates of Youth Homelessness in the United States
title_sort prevalence and correlates of youth homelessness in the united states
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5826721/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29153445
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.10.006
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