TY - JOUR
T1 - A comparison of addiction and transience among street youth
T2 - Los Angeles, California, Austin, Texas, and St. Louis, Missouri
AU - Ferguson, Kristin M.
AU - Jun, Jina
AU - Bender, Kimberly
AU - Thompson, Sanna
AU - Pollio, David
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments Funding for this study was provided in Los Angeles by the Haynes Foundation and in Austin and St. Louis by the Center for Mental Health Services Research at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at the Washington University at St. Louis. We would like to acknowledge Gretchen Heidemann, MSW, from the University of Southern California School of Social Work, and Jennifer McClendon, MSW, from the George Warren Brown School of Social Work for their involvement in the study as research assistants.
Copyright:
Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2010/6
Y1 - 2010/6
N2 - The purpose of this study was to compare measures of addiction and transience among street youth in three disparate urban areas: Los Angeles, California; Austin, Texas; and St. Louis, Missouri. Street youth from Los Angeles (n = 50), Austin (n = 50) and St. Louis (n = 46) were recruited using comparable engagement strategies. Youth were interviewed concerning use of alcohol and other substances and their level of transience. Youth from each city were compared using chi-squares and multinomial logistic regression. Results reveal that youth in each city differed in ethnicity, age, educational status, length of time homeless, and substance abuse and dependence. Comparisons across youth in three cities suggest that length of homelessness and drug dependence/abuse significantly differentiate between low, moderate and high transience. Understanding the heterogeneity of this population as well as the relationship between addiction and transience has implications for providing national substance abuse responses.
AB - The purpose of this study was to compare measures of addiction and transience among street youth in three disparate urban areas: Los Angeles, California; Austin, Texas; and St. Louis, Missouri. Street youth from Los Angeles (n = 50), Austin (n = 50) and St. Louis (n = 46) were recruited using comparable engagement strategies. Youth were interviewed concerning use of alcohol and other substances and their level of transience. Youth from each city were compared using chi-squares and multinomial logistic regression. Results reveal that youth in each city differed in ethnicity, age, educational status, length of time homeless, and substance abuse and dependence. Comparisons across youth in three cities suggest that length of homelessness and drug dependence/abuse significantly differentiate between low, moderate and high transience. Understanding the heterogeneity of this population as well as the relationship between addiction and transience has implications for providing national substance abuse responses.
KW - Addiction
KW - Homeless youth
KW - Street youth
KW - Substance abuse
KW - Transience
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=77952091218&partnerID=8YFLogxK
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U2 - 10.1007/s10597-009-9264-x
DO - 10.1007/s10597-009-9264-x
M3 - Article
C2 - 19898986
AN - SCOPUS:77952091218
VL - 46
SP - 296
EP - 307
JO - Community Mental Health Journal
JF - Community Mental Health Journal
SN - 0010-3853
IS - 3
ER -