Gizem Erdem

Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence Reported by Homeless Youth in Columbus, Ohio

No study to date has reported intimate partner violence (IPV) experiences among homeless youth. This study sought to uncover lifetime prevalence estimates of physical, sexual, and emotional IPV among a nonprobability sample of 180 homeless male and female youth in Columbus, Ohio. To that aim, self-reported IPV and the association between IPV and gender, race, age, and history of childhood abuse were examined. Results showed that physical violence and verbal abuse were the most commonly reported experiences of IPV in the current sample and ranged from 30.0% to 35.4%. Women and those with a history of childhood abuse were more likely to be victimized by their intimate partners. Specifically, multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that women were approximately twice as likely as men to be verbally and physically abused in intimate relationships. Moreover, youth who reported being victims of abuse in childhood were more than twice as likely to experience verbal abuse and physical violence in their relationships. Given the high lifetime occurrence of IPV among homeless youth, intervention efforts should target IPV to prevent future occurrence. Findings also suggest that intervention efforts should consider gender and history of childhood abuse.

Better to bend than to break: Coping strategies utilized by substance-abusing homeless youth

This study investigated the relationship between coping styles and problem behaviors among a sample of substance-abusing homeless youth. Homeless youth (n = 268) were recruited through the only drop-in center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Results revealed that youth with higher task-oriented coping reported less delinquent behaviors while those with higher emotion-oriented coping reported higher levels of anxiety/ depression and higher delinquency. Contrary to expectations, youth utilizing higher avoidance-oriented coping skills showed fewer HIV risk behaviors, fewer anxiety/depressive symptoms, and less frequent alcohol use. Findings emphasize the need to examine coping strategies in the context that individuals are situated.

Action Research and Its History as an Adult Education Movement for Social Change.

This article is an attempt to tell the story of action research as it has developed over the last half century. Action research has become an important part of a number of research programs, especially in the field of education. Action research is a powerful idea centering on humans’ ability to break free from deleterious social habits through autonomous, democratic participation. Action research was originally conceived as an adult education program influenced by the work of Eduard Lindeman, Kurt Lewin, John Dewey, and Jean Piaget. A second branch of action research, participatory action research, emerged about 5 years later guided by the sociological work of William Foote Whyte. Participatory action research focused less on democratic processes and egalitarian decision making and more on understanding organizational problems through the eyes of the participants. Chris Argyris and Eric Trist both extended action research in new directions by merging new ideas.

That which does not kill you makes you stronger: runaway youth's resilience to depression in the family context.

The present study sought to uncover the relationship between risk and protective factors for depressive symptomatology among runaway youth. To that aim, 3 models of resiliency-the compensatory, risk-protective, and challenge models-were tested separately on girls and boys. The data came from a cross-sectional survey on a sample of 140 runaway adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 years who were recruited from the only runaway crisis shelter in a large Midwestern city. Risk factors in the proposed model included primary caretakers depressive symptoms, family conflict, and adolescents and primary caretakers verbal aggression; protective factors included adolescents report of task-oriented coping and family cohesion. Findings supported the challenge model for predicting adolescent depressive symptoms, suggesting that moderate levels of risk can be beneficial for these runaway adolescents. In addition, risk and protective factors differed by adolescent gender. Implications for preventive interventions and future research are discussed.

Participatory Action Research and Its Meanings:Vivencia, Praxis, Conscientization

This article traces the development of the “second” and arguably more well-known “genre” of participatory action research (PAR). The article argues that the origins of PAR are highly distributed and cannot really be traced back to the ideas of a single person or even a single group of researchers. Instead, the development of PAR is tied to social movements of the 20th century, in particular land reform, anticolonialism, and need for a new research methodology, occurring simultaneously across multiple continents. The origins of PAR have little to do with the action research that developed in the United States. For that reason the PAR referent can sometimes be confusing or even misleading. We suggest that the second PAR also be recognized through its mirror concepts of vivencia, praxis, and conscientization—PAR/VPC. We discuss the core underpinnings of PAR/VPC and its evolution with strong ties to the sociopolitical context of developing societies and their fight for liberation. We also suggest our reflections of future of PAR/VPC with integration of feminist perspectives and inclusion of youth in the education movement.

Efficacy of ecologically-based treatment with substance-abusing homeless mothers: Substance use and housing outcomes

This randomized pilot study tested the efficacy of an integrative treatment targeting homeless substance abusing mothers with young children in their care. Sixty mothers with 2-6 year old children were recruited from a local family shelter. The mothers were randomly assigned to Ecologically-Based Treatment (n=30) or treatment as usual (n=30). The intervention group received 3 months of rental and utility assistance up to

Intervention for Homeless, Substance Abusing Mothers: Findings from a Non-Randomized Pilot

600 per month, case management services, and substance abuse counseling (referred to as supportive services). The treatment as usual group received housing and services through the family shelter and community housing programs. All participants completed follow-up assessments at 3, 6, and 9 months post-baseline. Mothers receiving Ecologically-Based Treatment showed a quicker decline in alcohol frequency and a quicker increase in housing stability. Furthermore, with supportive services, two-thirds of women were successful in maintaining their apartments 6 months after rental assistance ended.

The utility of mentoring homeless adolescents: a pilot study.

Little empirically-based information is available regarding how best to intervene with substance-abusing homeless mothers. This study pilot-tested a comprehensive intervention with 15 homeless women and their 2- to 6-year-old children, recruited from a local family shelter. All participants were offered integrated intervention with three major components. The first component was housing which included 3 months of rental and utility assistance, and these services were not contingent upon womens abstinence from drugs or alcohol. The second and third components included 6 months of case management services and an evidence-based substance abuse treatment (Community Reinforcement Approach; CRA). Analysis revealed that women showed reductions in substance use (F 2,22 = 3.63; p < .05), homelessness (F 2,24 = 25.31; p < .001), and mental health problems (F 2,20 = 8.5; p < .01). Further, women reported reduced internalizing (F 2,22 = 4.08; p < .05) and externalizing problems (F 2,24 = 7.7; p = .01) among their children. The findings suggest that the intervention is a promising approach to meet the multiple needs of this vulnerable population. These positive outcomes support the need for future research to replicate the findings with a larger sample using a randomized design.

A review of services and interventions for runaway and homeless youth: Moving forward

Background: Despite the intuitive appeal and popularity of mentoring programs, mentoring has shown only limited success for positively impacting children’s psychosocial functioning. Furthermore, we were not able to identify a study that examined the potential utility of mentoring for homeless adolescents. Objective: The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the impact of mentoring among a group of homeless adolescents who were also receiving substance abuse treatment. Methods: This pilot study examined the impact of mentoring among homeless adolescents (n = 90) between the ages of 14 and 20 years who also received substance abuse treatment. A longitudinal design was used in which adolescents were assessed at baseline, 3 months, and following the completion of treatment at 6 months postbaseline. Results: Findings showed that adolescents with a history of physical or sexual abuse attended more mentoring sessions. Also, mentoring in addition to treatment was associated with a decrease in problem consequences associated with substance use. However, more mentoring with fewer treatment sessions was associated with an increase in internalizing behaviors. Only these two outcomes were associated with mentoring. Conclusions and Scientific Significance: While not providing resounding support for mentoring, this study suggests that examining the mentor/mentee relationship may be a fruitful line of future research given that significant variability among the mentor/mentee pairs was noted for some outcomes of interest.