Premium
ALCOHOL/DRUG DEPENDENCY IN HOMELESS YOUTH
Author(s) -
Barczyk Amanda,
Thompson Sanna
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
alcoholism: clinical and experimental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.267
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1530-0277
pISSN - 0145-6008
DOI - 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2008.00689_1.x
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , population , heroin , outreach , psychiatry , substance abuse , medicine , psychology , alcohol , drug , logistic regression , clinical psychology , environmental health , biochemistry , chemistry , political science , law
Purpose: By age 16, half of all adolescents use alcohol and about one‐quarter use marijuana. The pervasiveness of substance abuse is remarkably higher among homeless youth as compared to the general youth population. A significant need exists to develop appropriate drug and alcohol treatment that takes into account the unique perspectives of drug use in the culture of homelessness. While predictors, such as criminal involvement, academic failure, victimization, and “street” involvement are useful in understanding substance use among homeless youth, further research on alcohol/drug dependency is needed to develop effective interventions for this population. Methods: A convenience sample of 153 homeless youth accessing services at a street outreach center participated. Those 18‐23 years of age, whose case managers had identified them as drug or alcohol users, were recruited. Following informed consent, youth completed a quantitative questionnaire. Results: The sample averaged 21 years of age, were predominantly white (67.3%) and male (65.4%). Results indicated that 98.7% of these youth reported drinking alcohol, using amphetamines (39.2%), heroin (46.4%), and/or marijuana (91.5%); 57.8% of youth interviewed were identified as dependent on substances and 61.0% were dependent on alcohol. Logistic regression analyses indicated that participants who received support from substance‐using street friends (OR=2.1) and were dependent on substances (OR=4.9) increased the likelihood of alcohol dependency, while the more positive youth felt about drug use (OR=.88), the more confident they were in their ability to decrease their drug use (OR=.65), or earned money by selling blood/plasma (OR=.06) decreased the likelihood of alcohol dependence (model χ 2 = 63.8, p<.001). Similar analyses of drug dependence showed that those who felt changing drug use behavior was important (OR=1.3), carried a weapon (OR=3.1), or were alcohol dependent (OR=2.7) were more likely to be drug dependent (model chi‐square = 49.1, p<.001). Conclusions: This study confirms the magnitude of alcohol/drug dependence among homeless youth and demonstrates the varying predictors for alcohol and drug dependency. While school‐based substance use prevention programs are available for adolescents, effective programs for homeless youth are nearly non‐existent and needed. This study highlights the need for service agencies proving care for these youth to assess their alcohol and drug use. Although typical drug treatment is not feasible for these agencies, developing assessment and referral mechanisms and brief interventions that target alcohol/drug issues are needed.