Adolescents' and Parents' Perceptions of Runaway Behavior: Problems and Solutions

This exploratory study examined runaway adolescents' and parents' perceptions about youth and family life and explored reasons youth run away and what could be done that would help them remain home. Comparisons between adolescents' and parents' reports of family functioning demonstrated significant discrepancies. Few parents assumed any responsibility for the runaway behavior or change efforts. More adolescents blamed themselves or cited difficulties in parent–child relationships and offered ideas that entailed altering their attitudes and behaviors or family relationships. The implications of the findings for interventions and future research efforts are explored.     

The Association Between Same-Sex Romantic Attractions and Relationships and Running Away Among a Nationally Representative Sample of Adolescents

Sexual minorities are overrepresented among the runaway population, and sexual minority runaways are at greater risk for adverse health outcomes than their heterosexual peers. Our knowledge of this vulnerable population has been restricted by methodological limitations of existing studies. This study used a nationally representative sample of U.S. adolescents to explore the association between same-sex romantic attractions and relationships and run away behavior over a 2 year period. Results indicated that although the association between sexual orientation and running away appears to be partially attenuated by other risk factors for running away, there remains a significant positive association between same-sex romantic attractions and running away. Furthermore, youth with no romantic or sexual relationships were significantly less likely to report running away compared to youth with only opposite-sex relationships. These associations remained significant even after controlling for other risk factors.     

How Runaway and Homeless Youth Navigate Troubled Waters: Personal Strengths and Resources

Little attention has been paid to how runaway or homeless adolescents are able to make successful transitions into adulthood. This article reports on partial findings from an exploratory study of the research question, “How do formerly runaway and homeless adolescents navigate the troubled waters of leaving home, living in high-risk environments, and engaging in dangerous behaviors, to make successful developmental transitions into young adulthood?” This qualitative study involved interviews with 12 formerly runaway or homeless youth. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative method. This paper reports on findings related to the personal strengths and resources that enabled youth to make successful transitions: learning new attitudes and behaviors, personal attributes, and spirituality. Recommendations for program development and intervention with homeless or at-risk youth are discussed.     

Family Functioning and Mental Health of Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Youth in the Trans Teen and Family Narratives Project

Transgender and gender-nonconforming (TGN) youth are at increased risk for adverse mental health outcomes, but better family functioning may be protective. This study describes TGN youth’s mental health and associations with family functioning in a community-based sample. Participants were from 33 families (96 family members) and included 33 TGN youth, ages 13 to 17 years; 48 cisgender (non-transgender) caregivers; and 15 cisgender siblings. Participants completed a survey with measures of family functioning (family communication, family satisfaction) and mental health of TGN youth (suicidality, self-harm, depression, anxiety, self-esteem, resilience). TGN youth reported a high risk of mental health concerns: suicidality (15% to 30%), self-harm (49%), clinically significant depressive symptoms (61%); and moderate self-esteem (M = 27.55, SD = 7.15) and resiliency (M = 3.67, SD = 0.53). In adjusted models, better family functioning from the TGN youth’s perspective was associated with better mental health outcomes among TGN youth (β ranged from ?0.40 to ?0.65 for self-harm, depressive symptoms, and anxious symptoms, and 0.58 to 0.70 for self-esteem and resiliency). Findings from this study highlight the importance of considering TGN youth’s perspectives on the family to inform interventions to improve family functioning in families with TGN youth.     

Representations of homelessness,home environments,and authority in the context of runaway behaviors reported by foster care youth residing in an emergency shelter

Between 31 and 46% of youth with histories of foster care placement were homeless at least once. Studies of the incidence of runaway behavior have identified a host of risk factors associated with running away from foster care placement, but less is known about the internalized processes of these individuals at risk for running away or the contextual experience surrounding it. This study is designed to investigate the representations made by individuals who have engaged in running away to uncover and explore thematic patterns. Accordingly, a secondary analysis was performed on data from four group interviews (n?=?15) collected from youth under the care of one child protective services (CPS) agency-operated emergency shelter setting, using thematic content analysis by two independent reviewers. Codes were networked and themes that emerged were discussed through a framework of power dynamics. Themes around the participants’ perceptions of homelessness, lack of control, and their resistance to authority were all identified as contributory to the theme of running away. The act of running away is, therefore, framed as a threshold event representing a multifaceted phenomenon combining perceptions of self-identity, conflict, and power in the home.     

Precursors of Running Away During Adolescence: Do Peers Matter?

Although peer influence is a salient predictor of delinquency, how it operates in the etiology of runaway behavior is not fully understood. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, this study demonstrates the importance of taking peers into account in understanding the etiology of running away. The findings suggest that peer deviance is strongly associated with adolescents’ decision to run away, independent of social network characteristics and their own deviant and conventional behavior, parental attachment, and school bonding. However, the causal process that links peer characteristics and running away remains unclear. More studies are needed to disentangle the underlying reciprocal and interactional relationships among peers, individual behavior, and social contexts such as family and school.     

Examining Missing Person Police Reports to Identify the Service Needs of Runaway Youth and Their Families

Abstract

This study examined situational and demographic characteristics in a sample of 47 children missing person police reports obtained from a law enforcement agency to identify the service needs of runaway youth and their families. Results show that runaways represented the only category of missing children contained in the data. The present findings are consistent with national data which suggest that: a typical runaway youth is most likely engaging in acting out rebellious behavior; more girls than boys ran away; most were 14 or 15 years old and most had a prior history of running away. These results support the need for a comprehensive integration between social work research and practice and are used to provide recommendations for the service needs of runaway children and their families. Social work practice recommendations include: (1) community campaigns, (2) training, and (3) increased collaboration between law enforcement and child welfare agencies.     

Three Psychotherapies for Suicidal Adolescents: Overview of Conceptual Frameworks and Intervention Techniques

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth, and as many as one in five youth report having had at least one serious thought of suicide in the past year. Despite the enormous emotional pain and suffering associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviors, up to 40 % of suicidal youth never receive treatment. Given that social workers are employed in multiple settings where suicidal children and adolescents are encountered (e.g. schools, homeless shelters, emergency departments, outpatient mental health agencies, private practice), they play a critical role in the identification and treatment of suicidal youth. In the past decade, evidence has emerged that attachment-based family therapy, integrated cognitive behavioral therapy, and dialectical behavior therapy can reduce suicidal ideation and/or suicide attempt in youth. The purpose of this article is to review the theoretical assumptions, conceptual frameworks and key intervention techniques for these three interventions so that clinicians can integrate these approaches into their practice with suicidal youth and families. Implications for practice are integrated throughout the review.     

Who runs away from home and why? How families,schools, and bullying influence youth runaways

While prior research establishes that youth who experience family problems are more likely to leave home before reaching adulthood, we know less regarding how peer victimization in the form of bullying may influence youths' likelihood of becoming runaways. Youth often run away from home to escape family conflict or abusive home environments. Mental illness, behavioral problems, and delinquent peers are also powerful forces predicting the likelihood of running away from home. Additionally, recent literature suggests that negative experiences at school may increase youths' decisions to leave home prematurely. In this article, I review literature that addresses who runs away from home, including variations by age, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, family structure, mental health, problem behaviors, and peer networks. I also suggest directions for future research, including an approach that considers how families and schools individually and collectively affect youths' likelihood of running away from home. Finally, I recommend a focus on bully victimization to better understand how victimization outside of the family affects the likelihood that youth will become runaways.     

Prevalence of Problem Gambling Among Adolescents: A Comparison Across Modes of Access,Gambling Activities,and Levels of Severity

The high availability and accessibility of online gambling have recently caused public concern regarding the potential increase of gambling-related problems among young people. Nonetheless, few studies among adults and none among adolescents have explored specific characteristics of gamblers as a function of gambling venues to date. This study sought to analyze the prevalence of gambling among a sample of adolescents in the last year, as well as sociodemographic and gambling-related characteristics as possible predictors of at-risk and problem gambling. The sample comprised 1313 adolescents aged 14–18 years. Participants were asked to respond to several questions regarding their gambling behavior. Chi square and ANOVA tests were performed in order to explore differences between groups, and a set of multinomial regressions established significant severity predictors. The prevalence of at-risk and problem gambling was 4 and 1.2 %, respectively. Regression analyses showed that having a relative with gambling problems predicted at-risk gambling. Both living with only one parent or not living with parents at all, and the prevalence of Electronic Gambling Machines in the last year were associated with problem gambling. Mixed-mode gambling was a predictor of both at-risk and problem gambling. Our findings extend previous research on gambling among adolescents by exploring gambling behavior according to different modes of access. Although the prevalence of exclusive online gambling among the total sample was low, these results support the need to consider specific subgroups of gamblers and their concrete related features when conducting both indicated prevention and treatment protocols for adolescents.     

Parent–youth communication to reduce at-risk sexual behavior: A systematic literature review

There are nearly 110 million cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that annually there are more than 19.7 million new STI cases. Of those, more than half are accounted for by youth aged 15–24 years. Although some STIs are not considered to be life threatening, they can lead to severe health problems, risk of HIV infection, or infertility if they are not properly treated. Some research has shown that parent–youth communication can reduce youth’s at-risk sexual behaviors. The following is a systematic review of the literature on parent–youth sexual communication and family-level interventions designed to reduce risky sexual behavior in youth.     

Predictors of substance use and family therapy outcome among physically and sexually abused runaway adolescents

There is a dearth of research that examines the impact of family systems therapy on problems among sexually and/or physically abused youth. Given this void, differential outcome and predictors of substance use change were evaluated for abused, as compared with nonabused, runaway adolescents who were randomly assigned to family therapy or treatment as usual. Abused adolescents reported lower family cohesion at baseline, although both abused and nonabused adolescents showed similar substance use reductions. Utilizing hierarchical linear modeling, we found that substance use changed with change in cohesion over time. These findings link change in family functioning to change in adolescent substance use, supporting fiamily systems theory. Findings suggest that a potent target of intervention involves focus on increasing positive communication interactions.     

Family Factors as Predictors of Depression Among Runaway Youth: Do Males and Females Differ?

This study investigates family environments associated with depressive symptoms among male and female runaway adolescents. Data were collected on 197 participants recruited from a runaway youth shelter in the southwest. Regression analyses showed that females’ depressive symptoms were predominately related to interpersonal relationships, such as family communication, conflict, and worry about these relationships. Male participants were particularly sensitive to father’s alcohol abuse and worry about family relationships. Identifying family factors associated with depressive symptoms among male and female runaway youth has implications for treatment and reunification of adolescents with their families.     

Mental Disorders,Comorbidity, and Postrunaway Arrests Among Homeless and Runaway Adolescents

This study examined the associations between lifetime mental disorder, comorbidity, and self‐reported postrunaway arrests among 428 (187 males, 241 females) homeless and runaway youth. The analysis examined the pattern of arrests across five lifetime mental disorders (alcohol abuse, drug abuse, conduct disorder, major depressive episode, and posttraumatic stress disorder). The adolescents, ranging from 16 to 19 years old, were interviewed directly on the streets and in shelters in four Midwestern states using computer‐assisted personal interviewing. Extensive self‐reports of early life history, behaviors since running away from home, and diagnostic interviewing (UM‐CIDI and DISC‐R) were used to estimate possible disorders. There was a high level of postrunaway arrests reported by the youth; more than half were arrested at least once after the initial runaway, with the average of 4.4 times. Consistent with the hypotheses, there were differential associations between individual mental disorders and involvement with the criminal justice system. Only externalizing disorders such as substance abuse and conduct disorder were related to arrest. Street youth with multiple externalizing and internalizing disorders were more likely to be arrested than nondisordered youths.     

Examining the Quality of Adolescent–Parent Relationships Among Chilean Families

The purpose of this study was to examine if adolescents’ reports of warm and harsh parenting practices by their mothers and fathers varied as a function of demographic, youth and their mothers or mother figures’ individual and family characteristics. Data are from 707 community-dwelling adolescents (mean age = 14, SD = 1.4) and their mothers or mother figures in Santiago, Chile. Having a warmer relationship with both parents was inversely associated with the adolescents’ age and positively associated with adolescents’ family involvement and parental monitoring. Both mothers’ and fathers’ harsh parenting were positively associated with adolescent externalizing behaviors and being male and inversely associated with youth autonomy and family involvement. These findings suggest that net of adolescent developmental emancipation and adolescent behavioral problems, positive relationships with parents, especially fathers, may be nurtured through parental monitoring and creation of an interactive family environment, and can help to foster positive developmental outcomes.     

Understanding the Relationship Between Sports-Relevant Gambling and Being At-Risk for a Gambling Problem Among American Adolescents

Fantasy sports is a growing industry with a reported 56.8 million individuals participating in the United States and Canada alone in 2015. Whereas this activity has attracted considerable public attention, little research has examined its impact on adolescents in spite of their high rates of gambling. The current study examined the relationship between regular participation (more than once a month) in sport-relevant gambling activities among adolescents and those identified as being at-risk for a gambling problem. Questionnaire responses were collected from high school students (N = 6818; 49 % male) in Wood County, Ohio, United States. Statistical analyses revealed that regular involvement in sports betting, fantasy sports betting, and daily fantasy sports betting among adolescents was associated with a higher risk of gambling problems. Further, although males participate more frequently in these activities, females who participate have a stronger likelihood of being at-risk. Students aged 16–19 years old are at a higher risk for developing a gambling problem compared to younger adolescents when regularly engaging in sports-related gambling. Moreover, regularly participating in daily fantasy sports is the strongest predictor of at-risk gambling behavior in 13–15 year old students. A hierarchical logistic regression supports that controlling for gender and age, all forms of sport-relevant gambling activities are significant predictors of at-risk gambling. This study contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of sports betting and fantasy sports on adolescents and establishes an initial step for future studies to further investigate these relationships.     

A Latent Class Analysis of Behavioral and Psychosocial Dimensions of Adolescent Sexuality: Exploring Race Differences

Adolescent sexuality is a multidimensional concept involving sexual behavior as well as aspects of youth’s sexual self-concept and sexual socialization. The current study used latent class analysis (LCA) to examine patterns of adolescent sexuality, with data from a nationally representative sample of youth (Add Health; n = 13,447), incorporating information on behavioral and psychosocial dimensions of adolescent sexual experiences. LCA results highlighted that youth may exhibit similar sexual behaviors but vary on psychosocial dimensions, including sexual self-efficacy, knowledge, and views about sex. Sociodemographic characteristics, family factors, mental health, and substance use emerged as predictors of membership into different latent classes of sexuality. Given persistent racial differences in sexual outcomes and sexually transmitted infection (STI) rates, the current study also examined how adolescent patterns of sexuality may help mediate racial differences in sexual outcomes by young adulthood. Results suggested that racial differences in adolescent patterns of sexuality help mediate racial differences in the number of sexual partners by young adulthood but not differences in STI diagnosis. Findings highlight the need for research on multiple aspects of adolescent sexuality to understand linkages with later outcomes and group differences.     

Low Self-Control and Co-occurrence of Gambling with Substance Use and Delinquency Among Chinese Adolescents

Relatively little is known about gambling co-morbidity in Asian youth populations. The role of trait self-control in co-morbidity also remains under-explored in the gambling literature. This study examined the association between gambling, substance use and delinquency among Chinese adolescents, and the extent to which these forms of risk behavior are commonly predicted by low self-control. Data from a cross-sectional questionnaire survey of a stratified, random sample of 4,734 high school students aged 12–23 years in Hong Kong were analyzed. The prevalence of gambling pathology, frequency and attitudes showed statistically significant, positive and consistent relationships with tobacco use, alcohol use, and delinquent acts at the p < .001 level. Further analyses revealed that low self-control significantly (p < .001) predicts at-risk/probable pathological gambling, frequent gambling, strong permissiveness toward gambling, heavy use of tobacco and alcohol, and delinquent involvement, even after controlling for the potential shared correlates of socioeconomic characteristics, parental monitoring and peer delinquency. Hence, the concept that gambling problems and strong receptivity to gambling are likely to be part of a general problem behavior syndrome is evinced cross-culturally among young people in a Chinese context. It may also be cost-effective to increase intervention efforts to improve the self-control deficit in adolescents, as this should reduce their gambling and concurrent problem behavior.     

Impact of Parenting Behaviors on Recent Alcohol Use Among African American Students

Parenting is a critical factor in substance abuse prevention. Positive parenting behaviors are identified as a protective factor for substance abuse among youth. Limited research exists that investigates the role of parenting practices on minority youth substance use. The present study seeks to examine correlates between parenting and recent alcohol use among African American youth. Specifically, to what extent do African American students report experiencing specific parenting behaviors that are measured by the National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health?, do specific parenting behaviors increase the risk of recent alcohol use among African American youth?, does the impact of parenting behaviors on recent alcohol use among African American youth differ based on sex (males and females) and age category (12–13, 14–15, and 16–17 years old) were examined in this study? Logistic regression analysis of the National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health was conducted to examine the research questions. Findings indicated that parenting behaviors was associated with recent alcohol among youth. Significant differences were found for males, females, 12–13, 14–15, and 16–17 years olds. Study findings demonstrate the importance of positive parenting behaviors in youth alcohol prevention. Program specialists may target parenting as a means of preventing and reducing youth alcohol use among African American youth.     

A Model of Family Background,Family Process,Youth Self-Control,and Delinquent Behavior in Two-Parent Families

Using data from a national sample of two-parent families with 11- and 12-year-old youths (N = 591), we tested a structural model of family background, family process (marital conflict and parenting), youth self-control, and delinquency four years later. Consistent with the conceptual model, marital conflict and youth self-control are directly related to delinquent behavior, and parenting is linked with delinquency through its relationship with youth self-control. Males are at a greater risk of delinquency compared with females, a relationship that is explained by lower levels of self-control. Contrary to the hypothesized model, parenting practices and youth self-control do not mediate the relationship between marital conflict and delinquent behavior, and parenting practices and male gender have no direct relationship with delinquency. Implications for social work practice are discussed.