TY - JOUR
T1 - My Own Best Friend
T2 - Homeless Youths’ Hesitance to Seek Help and Strategies for Coping Independently after Distressing and Traumatic Experiences
AU - Bender, Kimberly
AU - Begun, Stephanie
AU - Durbahn, Rebecca
AU - Ferguson-Colvin, Kristin
AU - Schau, Nick
PY - 2018/1/29
Y1 - 2018/1/29
N2 - Although homeless youth face extreme adversities, they are often hesitant to seek help from formal and informal supports. The current study qualitatively explored homeless youths’ reasons for coping independently and their strategies for doing so. Youth accessing services (N = 145) in three U.S. cities were interviewed about their rationales for not seeking help from others regarding distressing experiences. Analyses illustrated specific barriers to help seeking that prompted homeless youth to cope on their own by utilizing soothing, avoidant, aggressive, and introspective coping strategies. Implications for outreaching to those least likely to seek help are discussed.
AB - Although homeless youth face extreme adversities, they are often hesitant to seek help from formal and informal supports. The current study qualitatively explored homeless youths’ reasons for coping independently and their strategies for doing so. Youth accessing services (N = 145) in three U.S. cities were interviewed about their rationales for not seeking help from others regarding distressing experiences. Analyses illustrated specific barriers to help seeking that prompted homeless youth to cope on their own by utilizing soothing, avoidant, aggressive, and introspective coping strategies. Implications for outreaching to those least likely to seek help are discussed.
KW - coping strategies
KW - Homeless youth
KW - independence
KW - risk and resilience
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85041241038&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85041241038&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/19371918.2018.1424062
DO - 10.1080/19371918.2018.1424062
M3 - Article
C2 - 29377774
AN - SCOPUS:85041241038
SP - 1
EP - 14
JO - Social Work in Public Health
JF - Social Work in Public Health
SN - 1937-1918
ER -