1. Length of Homelessness as a Predictor of Separation Anxiety and
Impairment in Homeless Youth 1
Nina Pacholec, MS,
Robert Friedberg, Ph.D., ABPP,
Wendy Packman, Ph.D., J.D.,
Leonard Beckum, Ph.D.
Pacific Graduate School of Psychology at Palo Alto University
Discussion
Homeless youth experience a host of stressors lending them to develop SAD. The results of this study delineate the impact of LOH on SAD symptoms and anxiety-related impairment in these youth. Gender’s significant predictive power on SAD symptoms is consistent with the literature and provides further support of a gender-specific vulnerability. The fact that LOH was a significant predictor of anxiety-related impairment, but not SAD symptoms, suggests that a cumulative effect of homelessness on youth results in greater levels of impairment. These results indicate a need for screening, and preventive and early interventions for anxiety disorders in homeless youth and suggest girls experiencing lengthier periods of homelessness are most in need of such support.
References
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March, J. S. (2012). Manual for the Multidimensional Anxiety
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1 Portions of this poster wrere completed as part of a the first authr’s dissertation.
s predictor of SAD scores (R2 = .088, F (1, 54) = 5.241, p < .03) with girls experiencing significantly more symptoms than boys (r (54) = .28, p < .02; see Table 2 for Pearson correlations).
A second multiple regression examined age, gender, and LOH as predictors of CAIS-P scores. Ethnicity was again excluded as a predictor variable after a one-way ANOVA showed an absence of variability between ethnic groups in the CAIS-P scores (see Table 3). Results of the multiple regression showed LOH as the strongest predictor of CAIS-P scores (R2 = .094, F (1, 54) = 5.577, p < .03), such that as LOH increased so did CAIS-P scores (r(54) = .306, p < .02; see Table 4 for Pearson correlations). I.
Introduction
Anxiety is one of the most prevalent psychological conditions experienced by homeless youth (Rafferty & Shinn, 1998). Youth who experience higher rates of stressors are at greater risk for developing anxiety disorders (Allen, Rapee, & Sandberg, 2008). Homeless youth experience a variety of stressors and at twice the rate as their low-income housed peers (Masten et al., 1993). Many of these stressors are relevant to SAD, including friendship disruption and changing schools (Masten et al., 1993). Combined with socioeconomic and familial structure risk factors, such stressors specifically place homeless youth at greater risk of developing SAD.
SAD symptoms and anxiety-related impairment in functioning in homeless youth were assessed with the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children 2nd Edition – Self Report (MASC 2 SR; March, 2012) and the Child Anxiety Impact Scale – Parent Version (CAIS-P; Langley, Bergman, McCracken, & Piacentini, 2004). The predictive value of age, gender, ethnicity, and length of homelessness (LOH) were examined to identify which was the best predictor of SAD symptoms and anxiety related impairment. LOH was expected to be the greatest predictor of SAD symptoms and anxiety-related impairment.
Methods
Fifty-six homeless child-caregiver pairs residing in family homeless shelters participated in the study. Youth completed the MASC 2 SR to assess for SAD symptoms using the Separation Anxiety/Phobias subscale. Caregivers completed a demographics questionnaire to gather information on the youth’s age, gender, ethnicity, and LOH. Age was measured by years while LOH was measured by number of days. Caregivers also completed the CAIS-P to assess the impact of anxiety symptoms on youth. Total scores of the CAIS-P represented anxiety-related impairment in youth.
Results
A multiple regression measured the strength of age, gender, and LOH as predictors of SAD symptoms. Ethnicity was removed as a predictor variable after a one-way ANOVA was performed and showed an absence of variability between ethnic groups in the MASC 2 SR scores (see Table 1). The multiple regression yielded results revealing gender as a strong