TY - JOUR
T1 - Prevalence of homelessness and co-occurring problems
T2 - A comparison of young adults in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, United States
AU - Heerde, Jessica A.
AU - Bailey, Jennifer A.
AU - Toumbourou, John W.
AU - Rowland, Bosco
AU - Catalano, Richard F.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors wish to express their appreciation and thanks to project staff and participants for their valuable contribution to the project. The work of Dr Heerde is supported by funding provided through a Research Fellowship funded by the Westpac Scholars Trust. Early conceptualizations of this article were supported through a Murdoch Children's Research Institute Population Health Theme Funding Grant. The authors are grateful for the financial support of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA012140), the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (R01AA017188), the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC; 491241) and the Australian Research Council (DP109574, DPO663371 and DPO877359) for supporting the IYDS. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the sponsors. The funding sources did not have any involvement in the analysis and interpretation of data, the writing of the article or the decision to submit the article for publication. The author(s) declare no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding Information:
The work of Dr Heerde is supported by funding provided through a Research Fellowship funded by the Westpac Scholars Trust. Early conceptualizations of this article were supported through a Murdoch Children’s Research Institute Population Health Theme Funding Grant. The authors are grateful for the financial support of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA012140), the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (R01AA017188), the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC; 491241) and the Australian Research Council (DP109574, DPO663371 and DPO877359) for supporting the IYDS . The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the sponsors. The funding sources did not have any involvement in the analysis and interpretation of data, the writing of the article or the decision to submit the article for publication.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2020/2
Y1 - 2020/2
N2 - Homelessness is associated with various co-occurring health and social problems yet; few contemporary international studies have examined these problems in young adulthood. This descriptive study presents cross-state comparison of the prevalence of young adult homelessness in Washington State, USA and Victoria, Australia using state representative samples from the International Youth Development Study (IYDS; n = 1945, 53% female). Associations between young adult homelessness and a range of co-occurring problems were examined using a modified version of the Communities That Care youth survey. Results showed significantly higher rates of past year homelessness were reported by young adults in Washington State (5.24% vs. 3.25% in Victoria). Cross-state differences were evident in levels of friends’ drug use, antisocial behavior, weekly income and support from peers. Unemployment (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] = 2.67), antisocial behavior (AOR = 3.54) and victimization (AOR = 3.37) were more likely among young adults reporting homelessness in both states. Young adults with higher weekly income were less likely to report homelessness (AOR = 0.69) in both states. No significant association between mental health problem symptoms, substance use, family conflict or interaction with antisocial peers and homelessness were found in either state. Rates of violent behavior were more strongly related to young adult homelessness in Washington State than Victoria. The current findings suggest that programs that enable young adults to pursue income and employment, reduce antisocial behavior and include services for those who have been victimized, may help to mitigate harm among young adults experiencing homelessness.
AB - Homelessness is associated with various co-occurring health and social problems yet; few contemporary international studies have examined these problems in young adulthood. This descriptive study presents cross-state comparison of the prevalence of young adult homelessness in Washington State, USA and Victoria, Australia using state representative samples from the International Youth Development Study (IYDS; n = 1945, 53% female). Associations between young adult homelessness and a range of co-occurring problems were examined using a modified version of the Communities That Care youth survey. Results showed significantly higher rates of past year homelessness were reported by young adults in Washington State (5.24% vs. 3.25% in Victoria). Cross-state differences were evident in levels of friends’ drug use, antisocial behavior, weekly income and support from peers. Unemployment (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] = 2.67), antisocial behavior (AOR = 3.54) and victimization (AOR = 3.37) were more likely among young adults reporting homelessness in both states. Young adults with higher weekly income were less likely to report homelessness (AOR = 0.69) in both states. No significant association between mental health problem symptoms, substance use, family conflict or interaction with antisocial peers and homelessness were found in either state. Rates of violent behavior were more strongly related to young adult homelessness in Washington State than Victoria. The current findings suggest that programs that enable young adults to pursue income and employment, reduce antisocial behavior and include services for those who have been victimized, may help to mitigate harm among young adults experiencing homelessness.
KW - Co-occurring problems
KW - Homelessness
KW - International study
KW - Young adults
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85076689272
U2 - 10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.104692
DO - 10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.104692
M3 - Article
C2 - 32139951
AN - SCOPUS:85076689272
SN - 0190-7409
VL - 109
JO - Children and Youth Services Review
JF - Children and Youth Services Review
M1 - 104692
ER -
