Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Date

2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Social Work

Department

Social Work

Committee Chair

Elena Delavega

Committee Member

Greg Washington

Committee Member

Bernadette Ombayo

Abstract

The number of youths experiencing homelessness has increased significantly over the years. The mental health of youth experiencing homelessness is of great concern due to the high disparity rates of depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders in comparison to their peers that have a home. A positive support factor can help youth by interceding during a time of need. Identifying that support can be challenging for youth as their cognitive functioning is often deregulated due to untreated mental illnesses. Concepts from the Ecobiodevelopmental Theory address the importance of counseling services assisting youth with establishing healthy and supportive outcomes by identifying positive connections. This cohort study comprises a secondary data analysis of profiles (n=414) of youth ages 13-17 that participated in government funded programs in the Metro Denver area from 2019-2023. This study seeks the relationship between participation in counseling services and the positive connections; the relationship between the total of counseling sessions attended and the total number of positive connections identified; and the effects of participating in various counseling modalities on identifying positive connections. Results from the Chi Square test did not identify a correlation between participating in counseling services and its influence with identifying more positive connections (p=.07, α=.05). The quantity of counseling sessions youth participated in while enrolled in a program has a weak positive correlation (Spearman’s ρ=.048) with the number of positive connections established. A factorial ANOVA analysis, with validity risks, suggests participating in family counseling (p=.001) and family and group counseling (p<.001) were significant with identifying positive connections. Implications from this study include key provisions to support youth experiencing homelessness.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to ProQuest.

Notes

Open Access

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