Using multivariate logistic regression, we examined the prevalence and correlates of homelessness among youth enrolled in a community-recruited prospective cohort known as the At-Risk Youth Study (ARYS), between September 2005 and October 2006. Of 478 individuals included in this analysis, 132 (27.6%) were female and 120 (25.1%) self-identified as Aboriginal. The median age was 22 (IQR: 20-24)....

BACKGROUND This study examines the characteristics and needs of 69 youth who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness at Pathway's Home Base Youth Drop-In Centre in the affluent suburb of Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada. METHODS A semi-structured interview examined demographics, characteristics, living arrangements, family characteristics, substance use, mental health, criminal activity and ed...

Approximately 1.5 million children experience homelessness in America each year. The current economic recession and staggering numbers of housing foreclosures have caused the numbers of homeless families to increase dramatically. The impact of homelessness on families and children is devastating. Without a place to call home, children are severely challenged by unpredictability, dislocation, an...

Little is known about how the social environment of homeless youth contributes to their risk and how it varies for different types of victimization. As such, the current study examines the constructs of victimization theories in order to investigate the potential risk for physical and sexual victimization among homeless young adults. Results revealed that running at an earlier age, running more...

Although research finds high rates of risky sexual and drug related behavior among homeless young people, little research had examined how the characteristics of their social networks encourage or constrain risky behaviors. Based on a sample of 145 homeless young adults in the Midwestern United States, results revealed that having used alcohol with at least one of their network members and the ...

To evaluate the processes and outcomes of a short-term shelter, both quantitative and qualitative data were gathered via participant observation, focus group interviews with shelter staff and residents, and individual interviews with a sample of 40 young women who had been homeless prior to using the shelter. The process evaluation showed that the shelter staff strived to utilize an empowerment...

OBJECTIVES We compared the prevalence of current homelessness among adolescents reporting a minority sexual orientation (lesbian/gay, bisexual, unsure, or heterosexual with same-sex sexual partners) with that among exclusively heterosexual adolescents. METHODS We combined data from the 2005 and 2007 Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey, a representative sample of public school students in...

This paper focuses on new challenges in influence maximization inspired by non-profits’ use of social networks to effect behavioral change in their target populations. Influence maximization is a multiagent problem where the challenge is to select the most influential agents from a population connected by a social network. Specifically, our work is motivated by the problem of spreading messages...

This paper focuses on new challenges in influence maximization inspired by non-profits’ use of social networks to effect behavioral change in their target populations. Influence maximization is a multiagent problem where the challenge is to select the most influential agents from a population connected by a social network. Specifically, our work is motivated by the problem of spreading messages...