Retaining a Sample of Homeless Youth

Overview

Journal J Can Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry

Date 2018 Jul 25

PMID 30038654

Citations 5

Authors

Cheryl Forchuk

Tony ORegan

Mo Jeng

Amanda Wright

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objective: Hard to reach populations need to be included in research studies to ensure proper representation of the general population. This paper explores tracking strategies used in the Youth Matters in London project to retain a sample of homeless youth.

Method: A total of 187 youth, aged between 16 and 24 years, homeless or precariously housed, and experiencing a serious mental health issue were recruited at a community drop-in center, by word of mouth and by snowball sampling. After the initial interview, three repeat interviews were conducted six months apart.

Results: The most successful strategy for contacting participants was through a local agency and e-mail. An analysis of the contact data identified participant retention rates as 88%, 86%, and 82% for each successive interview. This longitudinal retention rate is very high compared with research in other vulnerable populations, suggesting a strong willingness to participate in the Youth Matters in London project.

Conclusions: Retaining a sample of homeless youth is difficult, however, with time, patience and effort it has proven possible. This research underscores the importance of relationships with community agencies to retain vulnerable youth samples in longitudinal research designs.

Citing Articles

Identifying Marijuana Use Behaviors Among Youth Experiencing Homelessness Using a Machine Learning-Based Framework: Development and Evaluation Study.

Deng T, Urbaczewski A, Lee Y, Barman-Adhikari A, Dewri R JMIR AI. 2024; 3:e53488.

PMID: 39419495 PMC: 11528171. DOI: 10.2196/53488.

Lessons learned from conducting a community-based, nurse-led HIV prevention trial with youth experiencing homelessness: Pivots and pitfalls.

Santa Maria D, Fernandez-Sanchez H, Nyamathi A, Lightfoot M, Quadri Y, Paul M Public Health Nurs. 2024; 41(4):806-814.

PMID: 38573238 PMC: 11234818. DOI: 10.1111/phn.13314.

Design, Recruitment, and Implementation of Research Interventions Among Youth Experiencing Homelessness: A Systematic Review.

Lanni S, Stone M, Berger A, Wilson R, Wilens T, Philpotts L Community Ment Health J. 2024; 60(4):722-742.

PMID: 38332393 PMC: 11017793. DOI: 10.1007/s10597-023-01224-9.

Inclusion of Older Adults Who Experience Homelessness in Laboratory-Based Audiology Research: a Feasibility Study.

Shen J, Weller B, Perales J Ear Hear. 2021; 43(2):305-309.

PMID: 34935647 PMC: 8881289. DOI: 10.1097/AUD.0000000000001187.

Virtual Reality Meditation Among Youth Experiencing Homelessness: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of Feasibility.

Chavez L, Kelleher K, Slesnick N, Holowacz E, Luthy E, Moore L JMIR Ment Health. 2020; 7(9):e18244.

PMID: 32969834 PMC: 7545327. DOI: 10.2196/18244.

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