Collaborative Research: Extended Family Support and the Housing Stability of Youth

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Family rejection is a well-known cause of youth homelessness. This project aims to understand how support from extended family members shapes pathways of housing stability and safety before youth end up at shelters or on the streets. The study documents the roles and practices of grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and adult siblings in providing long-term shelter and housing stability for youth whose parents are unsupportive or ambivalent about their children’s identities and behaviors. The research is innovative in its focus on youth who are experiencing challenges at home but are not yet homeless. The study advances the science on familial social support and homelessness. Researchers draw from the study’s findings to engage in outreach to youth shelters and programs and inform practitioners and decision-makers on strategies to prevent youth homelessness.To understand the role of non-parental relatives and how their support shapes the housing stability and safety of youth, this project studies 80 youth aged 16-19 who are at risk of homelessness using a 14-month mixed-methods longitudinal approach. Participants are recruited from two states in the southwest United States, including youth in rural communities and from minority groups. Data are collected through an initial interview, 10 monthly surveys, and a follow-up interview tailored to each respondent. Researchers evaluate how the forms and consistency of instrumental and emotional support that youths receive from extended family influence their sense of safety and housing stability. A longitudinal approach enables analysis of how family support and housing stability and safety shift over time.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.