3.4 Effectively Collecting, Coordinating, and Using Youth Data Speaker: Peter Connery Data is essential to create effective evidence-based strategies to prevent and end homelessness. This workshop will examine methodologies of point-in-time counts and other surveys, discuss coordinating HMIS with mainstream data systems and explore ways to use these data to inform policy decisions and interventions.

1. Effectively Collecting, Coordinating, and Using Youth Data
Improving Access and Outcomes:
Including homeless youth in your research design and methodology
Peter Connery | Workshop - February 9, 2012
Central Coast Bay Area Southern California
55 Brennan St. 1871 The Alameda, Ste. 180 P.O. Box 1845
Watsonville, CA 95076 San Jose, CA 95126 Claremont, CA 91711
(831) 728-1356 (408) 247-8319 (909) 267-9332
WWW. APPLIEDSURVEYRESEARCH . ORG

2. WHO WE ARE
APPLIED SURVEY RESEARCH
• A 32-year-old California-based nonprofit social
research firm
• Strong advocate of community-based participatory
research
• Has conducted over 40 PIT counts, and developed
homeless transitional aged youth (TAY) counts in
Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Santa Clara-San Jose,
Riverside, Sonoma, Santa Cruz, Mendocino,
Monterey, among others
2

3. WHY A SPECIAL YOUTH COUNT?
• General PIT count methods undercount youth
• Homeless youth (TAY) results in AHAR and CoC
reports do not reflect growing trend; HUD
supports more youth specific data collection
• TAY do not co-mingle with older homeless
population; thoughtful outreach is critical
• TAY programs need data for program planning and
funding
• ASR recommends 2 step process
» Observational count
» TAY survey
3

4. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE – DATA SOURCES
• 2011 data from general Homeless PIT survey
(N=5,437) and supplemental youth survey
• 885 general survey respondents under 25
(includes surveys in Orange & San Francisco)
• 452 supplemental youth survey respondents
under 25
• Supplemental youth surveys from Santa Clara-San
Jose, Sonoma, Santa Cruz, Monterey, Riverside,
and Las Vegas
• Most surveys administered by TAY peers
4

5. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE (Continued)
AGE GENDER
100%
Other
Transgender
1.0%
2.0%
80%
60% 52.9%
Male
40% 33.9% Female
49.9%
47.0%
20%
8.8%
4.4%
0%
13-15 16-17 18-20 21-24
years old years old years old years old
N=885 N=880
Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless
Youth Survey. Youth Survey.
5

6. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE (Continued)
AGE WHEN TAY RESPONDENT FIRST EXPERIENCED HOMELESSNESS
100%
80%
60%
40% 33.5%
22.4% 25.5%
20%
11.6%
7.0%
0%
< 10 years 11-15 years 16-17 years 18-20 years 21-24 years
old old old old old
N=415
Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless Youth Survey.
6

7. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE (Continued)
FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTED TO TAY RESPONDENTS’ HOMELESSNESS
Fight or conflict with parents/guardians 42.3%
Financial issues 38.7%
Emotional Abuse 29.6%
Addiction 29.4%
Physical Abuse 19.5%
School issues 17.7%
Legal issues 15.7%
Mental Health issues 13.9%
Parent/guardian moved or relocated 11.4%
Sexual Abuse 10.9%
Gang violence/activity 7.8%
Sexual identity 5.8%
Pregnancy 4.8%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Multiple response question with 395 respondents offering 980 responses
Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless Youth Survey.
7

8. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE (Continued)
FAMILY BACKGROUND
• 20% stated parents were or currently are homeless
• Only 22% lived with both parents prior to homelessness
• 49% had parents or caregivers who abused drugs or alcohol
when they were younger
• 28% of TAY had instance of foster care; 15% of homeless 25+
had instance of foster care
» 8% of TAY had been in foster care just prior to homelessness
• 23% had their own children; of those 52% were currently
living with them
Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless Youth Survey.
8

9. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE (Continued)
HEALTH AND SERVICES
• 46% do not receive any receive government services;
compared to 29% for 25+ year old homeless
population
• 18% do not seek services for fear of CPS
• 15% do not seek services for fear of contact with their
families
• 36% self-rated health assessment is “fair or poor”
• 35% have traded sex, drugs, or both for a place to stay
Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless Youth Survey.
9

10. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE (Continued)
SAFETY AND MENTAL HEALTH
• 27% felt very safe in their current living situation;
54% felt somewhat safe, 20% felt not safe at all
• 48% had their safety threatened in last 30 days
• 46% had an adult in the community they trusted
• 88% stay in the County year-round
• 62% hang out in a group of 3 or more on a regular
basis
• 29% said they had no plans for their future; 23%
believed they would stay on the streets
Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless Youth Survey.
10

11. HOMELESS YOUTH PROFILE (Continued)
TAY RESPONDENTS’ CURRENT NEEDS
Food 60.2%
Job training/employment 52.1%
Clothing 48.1%
Shower 43.5%
Transportation 43.1%
Dental care 34.7%
Health care 33.6%
Education 33.3%
Substance abuse treatment 17.6%
Counseling/Mental Health Care 16.7%
Other 23.6%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Multiple response question with 432 respondents offering 1,756 responses
Source: Applied Survey Research (2011). Homeless Youth Survey.
11

12. HOMELESS YOUTH PIT COUNT CRITICAL PLANNING STEPS
• Promote the importance of a dedicated TAY Count
(typically on the day of your PIT count)
• Partner with TAY shelters, drop-in centers, and
other youth advocacy groups/efforts
• Try to include a TAY-focused youth survey in your
planning
• Plan for the desired outcomes of the count and
survey – e.g. programming info, geography, etc.
• Minimize the risk of duplicate counting of TAY
enumerated in general PIT count
12

13. HOMELESS YOUTH PIT COUNT CRITICAL PLANNING STEPS (Continued)
• TAY should enumerate TAY – Peer-to-peer with
close supervision by support staff
• TAY workers should be recruited by providers &
be reliable & trustworthy
• TAY workers need compensated training and close
oversight
• Assign Peer Counselors as oversight and include
volunteers to help drive
13

14. HOMELESS YOUTH PIT COUNT CRITICAL PLANNING STEPS (Continued)
• Choose a good time – 3:00pm (afterschool) or late
PM– Customize to regional local differences
• Let TAY enumerators determine the homeless
youth from the general youth & determine age
• Document locations to nearest cross-streets – do
not betray the trust you have earned by disclosing
locations
• Adult driver responsible for drop-off/pickup
• Reconcile TAY PIT to general PIT for duplication
review
14

15. HOMELESS YOUTH PIT COUNT – SURVEY COMPONENT
• Develop customized TAY homeless survey that
includes HUD required data + TAY specific data
• TAY peer-to-peer interviewing with incentives
• Develop survey quota plan informed by TAY PIT
• Develop quality control procedures – train
interviewers and avoid selection bias
• Provide driver support when necessary
• Administer as many surveys as possible or to a
quota plan
15

16. PRIVACY PROTECTION AND DATA CONFIDENTIALITY
• Informed consent required for participants under
age 18
• Follow an IRB process if possible
• Include information to respondents on local
hotlines for concerns about privacy or survey
content
• Provide a self-administered option
» Submit completed surveys in sealed envelopes
» Promote confidentiality
» Offer a survey hotline phone number
» Reduce influences of peer pressure
16

17. THANK YOU
PETER CONNERY
Vice President
Applied Survey Research
831.728.1356
connery@appliedsurveyresearch.org
Applied Survey Research (ASR) is a nonprofit, social research firm dedicated to
helping people build better communities by collecting meaningful data, facilitating
information-based planning and developing custom strategies.
W W W. A P P L I E D S U R V E Y R E S E A R C H . O R G