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STUDYING RUNAWAYS AND STREET YOUTH IN CANADA: CONCEPTUAL AND RESEARCH DESIGN ISSUES

NCJ Number
142629
Author(s)
A Brannigan; T Caputo
Date Published
1993
Length
221 pages
Annotation
The Canadian Interdepartmental Working Group on Youth at Risk undertook a study to examine the extent of the runaway and street youth problem in Canada, the demographic characteristics of young people who make up the runaway and street youth population, the antecedents to running away, the consequences of running and participating in street life, and the nature of the services directed at runaways and street youth including educational, health, criminal justice, and social services.
Abstract
Following an outline of conceptual and methodological issues, the report contains a literature review of relevant topics including Federal initiatives for youth at risk, definitional problems, youthful homelessness, school leavers, youth gangs, runaways and health issues, specific vulnerable sectors, and institutional and community responses. In designing a pilot study, the authors considered 11 studies, assessing the research design strategies used in each. The methodological strategy adopted aimed to estimate the size of the runaway and street youth populations, collect data from the street youth population, and seek alternative sources of information. The implementation and results of the pilot study conducted in Calgary are described. 3 figures, 310 references, and 3 appendixes