Risk-taking behaviors of homeless youth: moderation by parental monitoring and social support

ABSTRACT

Adolescence is a critical developmental period when youth are transitioning to be more independent while also being at heightened risk for negative developmental trajectories. This is especially true for adolescent youth experiencing homelessness. Using state population-representative 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) data, we examined the association between youth homelessness and engagement in risk-taking behaviors. The moderating roles of parental monitoring and social support were also examined. We found that 2.8% (8,922) of students were experiencing homelessness, and youth homelessness was associated with engagement in a greater number of risk-taking behavior types. The association between youth homelessness and risk-taking behaviors was not moderated by parental monitoring, which was high for stably housed youth as well as homeless youth. Social support was a significant moderator. For stably housed youth, the presence of someone to talk to when youth were feeling sad was associated with engagement in fewer risk-taking behaviors. Conversely, for homeless youth, having someone to talk to when the youth were feeling sad was associated with higher engagement in risk-taking behaviors. Findings extend our understanding of risk-taking behaviors among homeless youth, a particularly vulnerable group of adolescents. The study has implications for prevention and intervention efforts to support homeless youth.

KEYWORDS:

• Youth homelessness
• risk-taking behaviors
• parental monitoring
• social support
• Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS)

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes on contributors

Caitlyn R. Owens is a doctoral student of School Psychology at North Carolina State University and a predoctoral fellow for the Carolina Consortium on Human Development. Her research has predominately focused on preventing child maltreatment and improving outcomes for underserved, vulnerable populations; her current projects involve further understanding the linkages between adverse experiences, specifically homelessness, mental health, and risk-taking behaviors in youth. She is also conducting research aimed at examining facilitators and barriers to implementing large-scale parenting interventions.

Evadine L. Codd, MS, is a doctoral student of School Psychology at North Carolina State University. Her research interests focus on barriers to academic achievement in underrepresented and underserved populations. Evadine is currently conducting research examining the influence of family functioning on emotional and behavioral outcomes of adolescents with histories of adverse childhood experiences.

Mary E. Haskett, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at North Carolina State University, where her research team focuses on factors that shape parenting, the influences of parenting on children’s social-emotional development, adjustment of children with a history of maltreatment and homelessness, and the understanding of approaches to support parents and children experiencing homelessness. She is currently conducting research on interventions to promote positive parenting and reduce risk of maltreatment among parents residing in emergency shelters and transitional housing. Dr. Haskett is a past president of the Section on Child Maltreatment in the APA Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association; in 2016, she was honored to be the recipient of the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Staci Perlman Research Award.