The unique relations between early homelessness and educational well-being: An empirical test of the Continuum of Risk Hypothesis

Abstract

This study examined the Continuum of Risk Hypothesis by assessing the unique relations between early homelessness and educational outcomes while controlling for co-occurring risks. An integrated data system was used to account for multiple co-occurring early risk factors for an entire cohort of first grade students in a large urban school district and municipality (N = 8,267). Multilevel linear regression models indicated that the presence of some co-occurring risk factors explained the relation between homelessness and academic engagement problems in school. However, after controlling for co-occurring risks, an experience of homelessness was found to be uniquely related to social engagement problems in first grade. These results support the Continuum of Risk Hypothesis and stress the importance of early intervention for children with an experience of homelessness to foster their social development.

Homelessness and Housing Insecurity in Higher Education: A Trauma‐Informed Approach to Research, Policy, and Practice

“…Researchers tend to agree that, without targeted intervention, the likelihood of graduation for students experiencing homelessness is very low. Even in comparison to low‐income students with stable housing, those young people in homeless situations have significantly lower outcomes (Brumley et al., ). The impact magnifies as students progress into higher grades (Obradovic et al., ).…”

“…Homelessness during adolescence is associated with increased risk of depression, self‐harm, suicidal ideation, and other mental health issues (Gattis & Larson, 2015; Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness, ). Children who have experienced homelessness from low‐income families have been shown to have diminished classroom social and academic engagement compared to non‐homeless, low‐income peers (Brumley, Fantuzzo, Perlman, & Zager, ). The students who experience homelessness tend to face many barriers when attempting to engage with educational institutions, including limited connections with educators, difficulty participating in extracurricular activities, and disrupted relationships with academically engaged peers (Ingram et al., ).…”

“…However, research over the past few decades has demonstrated how homelessness correlates with many different risk factors. The academic challenges these youth experience “are not due solely to homelessness but to their higher likelihood of experiencing multiple, co‐occurring risks associated with poverty” (Brumley et al., , p. 34). For instance, teens experiencing homelessness are more likely to experience sexual assault and unplanned pregnancy (Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness, ).…”

Native American children and school readiness: A nationally representative study of individual and cumulative risks

“…The consideration of mothers' age was to accommodate mothers who may have been retained in school but still graduated at a later age, who were enrolled in special education and graduated later, and to differentiate mothers' education with another risk examining "teen mother" status (above). This approach has been used in prior literature (e.g., Brumley, Fantuzzo, Perlman, & Zager, 2015).…”

The Student Homelessness Crisis and the Role of School Psychology: Missed Opportunities, Room for Improvement, and Future Directions

“…Collectively, ALEs, cumulative risk factors, and related sequelae are barriers to academic success in homeless students. Although the specific ways in which these factors interact await further investigation, having to deal with a preponderance of them likely results in a cascading burden that overwhelms the individual (Brumley, Fantuzzo, Perlman, & Zager, ; Masten et al., ). In other words, as ALEs and risk factors accumulate, succeeding in school and in other life domains becomes increasingly challenging, if not overwhelming.…”