HIV-risk behaviors associated with homelessness characteristics in youth

Purpose: To examine characteristics of youth homelessness associated with e ngaging in risk behaviors for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Methods: The sample included 288 currently homeless or runaway Washington, DC youth aged 14-21 years. Measures were self-reported homelessness charact eristics, unsafe sexual behavior, injection drug use, and background charac teristics. Bivariate and multivariable analyses of the relationships betwee n homelessness characteristics and HIV risk behaviors were conducted. Results: Both male (n = 140) and female (n = 148) participants reported hig h rates of unsafe sexual behaviors, but low rates of injection drug use. HI V risk was significantly associated in bivariate analyses with severity of homelessness circumstances (i.e., spending the night in public place or wit h strangers, going hungry, and participating in the street economy), the du ration of homelessness (i.e, greater number of episodes of homelessness, lo nger time length of current episode), and specific reasons for being homele ss (i.e., thrown out). In addition, sexual victimization and older age were associated with increased HIV risk. In multivariable models, a smaller set of these homelessness characteristics remained significant independent cor relates and explained a substantial amount of the variation in the HIV risk indices for both males and females. Conclusions: The results contribute to greater theoretical understanding of the characteristics of homelessness associated with increased risk of HIV infection within this vulnerable population of youth. The associations betw een homelessness characteristics and HIV risk suggest the need for HIV prev ention efforts to focus directly on ameliorating the homelessness circumsta nces of youth. (C) Society far Adolescent Medicine, 1999.