The association between place stayed and self-identification as homeless among unstably housed young adults in seven U.S. cities

ABSTRACT

Limited research has explored whether young adults that experience homelessness and housing instability (YAEH) self-identify as homeless. This study uses the Homeless Youth Risk and Resilience Survey (HYRRS) dataset, a seven-city sample of 1426 YAEH, to examine the relationship between the type of place a young adult stayed the night before their interview and whether they self-identified as homeless. While all participants were classified as homeless as aligned with the McKinny-Vento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987, about one third (30.66%) did not self-identify as homeless. Logistic regression analyses revealed a statistically significant relationship between the type of place stayed and self-identification as homeless; participants who slept outside the night before the interview were most likely to identify as homeless, followed by participants who stayed in shelters/institutions, then participants who couch surfed. Participants who had spent more total time unstably housed were more likely to identify as homeless, as were participants who identified as cisgender women. Findings from this study may be used to inform outreach and engagement practices among service providers, who may consider building partnerships across service sectors so unstably housed young people may access housing support without self-identifying as homeless.

KEYWORDS:

• Young people experiencing homelessness
• identity
• place
• sleeping location
• homelessness

Disclosure statement

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

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Danielle Maude Littman

Danielle Maude Littman is a PhD student in the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Denver. Her research most often uses participatory, qualitative, and arts-based methods to study collective care and community belonging, and particularly how marginalized groups care for one another when societal structures fail to meet their needs. She holds her Masters in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago, and her Bachelors in Theatre and Creative Writing from Northwestern University.

Jonah Dechants

Jonah DeChants, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow at Colorado State University's School of Social Work. He uses community-based research methods to study the experiences of youth and young adults experiencing homelessness, particularly those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ). Jonah previously worked for the Philadelphia Department of Human Services, supervising a federal planning grant which examined risk and protective factors of homelessness among youth aging out of foster care. Jonah has also worked for the LGBT Center at the University of Pennsylvania and Seeding Change, of Kalamazoo, Michigan. Jonah completed his PhD at the University of Denver's Graduate School of Social Work (GSSW). He earned his Master of Social Policy from the University of Pennsylvania's School of Social Policy and Practice and his Bachelor of Arts from Kalamazoo College. He is also an alum of the AmeriCorps VISTA Program.

Jama Shelton

Jama Shelton is an Assistant Professor at the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College and the Chief Strategy Officer for the True Colors Fund. Their research examines the experiences of LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness. In particular, Jama is interested in identifying and addressing systemic barriers rooted in hetero/cisgenderism that frequently constrain the successful transition into stable housing for LGBTQ youth and young adults.

Kimberly Bender

Dr. Kimberly Bender is a Professor in the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Denver. Her research partners with young people experiencing homelessness to understand their strengths and needs, engage them in social change projects to improve systems, and develop skills that can prevent adverse experiences. She values using participatory methods to partner with community members with lived experiences and practice wisdom.

Hsun-Ta Hsu

Dr. Hsun-Ta Hsu has over a decade of experience working with youth experiencing homelessness and community based homeless service providers both in Los Angeles County, CA and in St. Louis, MO. His research focuses on multilevel factors of homeless individuals’ health, and technology application in health and housing stability promotion among this vulnerable population.In recent years, Dr. Hsu has collaborated with scholars in institutions across the country to found the Research, Education and Advocacy Co-lab for Youth Stability and Thriving (REALYST), an innovative initiative among interdisciplinary scholars across the country to generate and translate research evidence to informing community service planning and policy actions. Through this initiative, he was able to disseminate research findings to community homeless service providers across the country to inform service development and delivery.

Sarah C. Narendorf

Dr. Sarah C. Narendorf is an associate professor and associate dean for research at the University of Houston, Graduate College of Social Work. Her research focuses on ensuring a successful transition to adulthood for marginalized young people, including youth experiencing homelessness. She is particularly interested in the transition to young adulthood for youth with mental health challenges who have also interfaced with public systems such as foster care or the juvenile justice system. Her interest comes from her experience working as a licensed clinical social worker in community mental health and transitional living.

Anamika Barman-Adhikari

Anamika Barman-Adhikari, PhD, is an associate professor of social work at the University of Denver. Her experiences in research, policy, and clinical services have coalesced in her current scholarly goals and agenda. These experiences have collectively helped her to formulate an academic agenda, which is devoted to the prevention of HIV and substance use among high-risk youth and other vulnerable populations. Barman-Adhikari's research interests are broadly centered on understanding the social-contextual determinants of risk and protective behaviors among vulnerable populations, such as youth experiencing homelessness.

Kristin M. Ferguson

Kristin M. Ferguson, Ph.D. is a Professor at the Arizona State University’s School of Social Work and Director of the Center for Human Capital and Youth Development. Her research focuses on the design, implementation, and evaluation of employment interventions for homeless and opportunity youth that integrate employment and clinical services, including supported employment and social enterprises. Over the past two decades, she has focused her research primarily in two areas: (1) design, implementation and evaluation of supported employment and social enterprise interventions for vulnerable youth populations combined with assessment of intervention feasibility, effectiveness, and implementation; and (2) rigorous evaluation across seven U.S. cities to examine the environmental and psychosocial conditions affecting youth homelessness and unemployment.

Kristen A. Prock

Dr. Kristen A. Prock is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Prior to joining the UW-Whitewater faculty in 2019, she worked for nearly a decade with system-involved children and adolescents who have significant behavioral and mental health needs in residential treatment settings. Dr. Prock’s research focuses on the experiences of LGBTQ homeless youth. Specifically, she is interested in better understanding the needs of this population and how direct services in housing programs impact mental health and substance use.

Diane Santa Maria

Dr. Diane Santa Maria is an Associate Professor and Dean at the Cizik School of Nursing at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She has developed, implemented, and tested interventions among youth and young adults experiencing homelessness using person-centered research methods including randomized controlled trials with a particular focus on HIV/STI/pregnancy prevention and treatment.

Robin Petering

Dr. Robin Petering is a community-based researcher at Lens Co, a research and advocacy consulting enterprise. Dr. Petering currently oversees several evaluation contracts with agencies across the country that serve young people experiencing homelessness. Dr. Petering’s approach to research and evaluation is to prioritize inclusiveness and equity for all individuals and agencies involved in any given project. Dr. Petering is regarded as one of the leading experts in the field of research on young adults experiencing homelessness informed by her personal experience as a front-line worker and volunteer in agencies that serve this population.