Although interventions that take an individualized, holistic approach to service delivery have been recommended for homeless youth, few such interventions have been described in the literature. This study sought to examine a unique, multi-faceted, community-based intervention developed in 2009 in Tampa, FL to provide services to homeless adolescents who are no longer living in the custody of a parent or guardian (i.e. unaccompanied youth). The intervention, titled Starting Right, Now (SRN), has served over 100 youth to date. The program provides residential, educational, recreational, and professional development services, as well as mental and physical health care. Each youth also receives a trained mentor who is in frequent contact with the youth. Other individualized services are provided as needed. Although SRN has been in existence for six years, the program has only been evaluated using measures such as changes in GPA, absentee rates, etc. In the current study, individual interviews with nine program participants who had been in SRN for at least one year were analyzed to explore how the youth themselves perceived that their lives had been impacted. Thematic analysis of interviews provided an opportunity to examine common themes among participants. Results showed that despite encountering some challenges, participants perceived that they had been lifted to higher educational and personal levels through obtainment of resources; adult and peer support systems; renewed trust in adults; increased hope; improved mental health; and a heightened sense of community. Practical implications for practice and research are discussed.

Erin is returning to her childhood home on a Native reservation in New Mexico. She hopes to see her father one more time before he dies, but she has other motives as well. Her relationships with her family, and with her lover Maddie come under pressure through this change in her life. Between the looming dream of reuniting with her father, and coming to terms with the new stage in her life Erin is learning how to accept herself and others.

Over one million youth (age 14-24) experience homelessness each year in the United States, about 5-8% of all youth. For homeless youth to become independent and avoid cycling through public services, consistent income is necessary. Barriers to gaining employment and subsequent income often stem from lack of education. Defining the educational goals of homeless youth and barriers in reaching them are crucial steps in the development of relevant and effective educational interventions. Using data obtained from surveys of homeless youth in an urban Western city, this study found large discrepancies between the educational goals of homeless youth and actual academic attainment. Becoming homeless before the age of 18 and having fewer lifetime parents or guardians were predictive of lacking a diploma or GED. Implications of this research for informing educational interventions for homeless youth are discussed.

Homelessness among unaccompanied youth is a unique, yet pervasive, social problem. Youth often become homeless through three central pathways: conflict with family, involvement in the foster system, and involvement in juvenile justice systems. As youth experience homelessness during important developmental period(s), vulnerability to mental illness may occur if not already present. The present study examined the type and prevalence of mental illness. Characteristics of homelessness, health and mental health service utilization, and pathways to homelessness were examined in relation to the occurrence of mental illness. Findings indicated that a variety of characteristics are associated with mental illness. Mental health service utilization was also evaluated.

This thesis explores homeless and street involved youth’s experiences of being kicked out from various programs and family situations and what draws them back. Using secondary data analysis from the Pathways to Resilience study, I examine the quantitative and qualitative data to determine youth’s risk and resilience processes, their past service use history, and their positive and negative experiences within these services. Homeless youth experience similar levels of risk as other high risk youth, higher individual resilience and prosocial behaviours but lower overall resilience and relationship to caregivers. Youth felt they were kicked out of services primarily due to minor rule infractions or due to their own lack of engagement with the service. Participants discussed critical aspects of engaging with service providers including whether services met their basic needs and whether relationships with staff were respectful, trusting, accepting, and non-judgmental. The implications for service design and delivery are discussed.

Thesis (M.A.)--Missouri State University, 2008. / "August 2008." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 101-105). Also available online.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--UCLA, 2010. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 286-288).

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 1994. / Title from title page screen, viewed April 4, 2006. Dissertation Committee: Lanny Morreau, Pamela H. Wheeler (co-chairs), William Rau, Paul Baker, John Briggs. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 106-120) and abstract. Also available in print.

No description available.

The overall purpose of this study was to examine the impact of psychological well-being on mental health and behavioral outcomes among transitioning homeless youth in a New York City shelter. The main objective was to elucidate the relationship between psychological health, distress, and behavioral program outcomes. Participants were 116 formerly homeless young adults enrolled in the transitional living Rights of Passage program at Covenant House New York; a homeless youth shelter providing both crisis services and residential transitional living programs to young adults age 18 – 21. The correlates of psychological distress and program outcome were studied in relation to psychological well-being as measured by the Scales of Psychological Well-Being (SPWB) identifying 6 core components of positive psychological functioning including Autonomy, Environmental Mastery, Positive Relationships with Others, Personal Growth, Purpose in Life, and Self-Acceptance. Markers of psychological distress were measured by using the PHQ-9 (Depression), GAD-7 (Generalized Anxiety), PTSD Checklist - Civilian Version (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder), GHQ-12 (General Distress), while behavioral outcome data (i.e., behavioral infractions/disciplinary incidents, employment, discharge disposition, education advancement, and total savings) were assessed via the Efforts to Outcome (ETO) online software database maintained by Covenant House New York. Results of Pearson r correlations demonstrated a statistically significant relationship between psychological well-being and psychopathology. Stepwise regression analyses also showed that certain components of psychological well-being accounted for a significant portion of the variance over time in anxiety, PTSD, and general distress above and beyond initial levels of psychopathology. Additionally, Pearson r correlations and ANOVA analyses demonstrated significant associations with psychological well-being and program outcome including behavioral infractions (verbal conflicts, and non-compliance infractions), time unemployed, total savings, and G.E.D. obtainment. In contrast, psychopathology demonstrated significant associations with only behavioral infractions (verbal conflicts) and total savings. Findings suggest that psychological well-being is differentially associated with program outcome from psychopathology and that interventions aimed at homeless youth may benefit from incorporation of strengths-based, positive psychological approaches.