Abstract
Several studies conducted on street youth have focused on causes of homelessness, their engagement in risky sexual behaviours and the prevalence of STIs, including HIV/AIDS. Although homeless youth are considered resilient, sparse literature exists on factors that promote resilience in this vulnerable group. Using a qualitative approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 purposively selected homeless children and youth (with a mean age of 14 years) from the Central Business District of Accra, Ghana. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Findings showed that a strong religious belief, sense of humour, engagement in meaningful social interactive activities, reciprocal friendship, adherence to cultural norms and support from community-based organizations were identified as factors that help homeless youth cope with the multiple challenges of street life. Strengthening such protective factors could help ameliorate the impact of adverse conditions of these street youth.
Highlights
Homeless youth are considered one of the most vulnerable groups in society as they are exposed to greater risks compared to other young adults
The specific research question was: what are the personal, socio-ecological resilience resources that enable resilience among street youth? The findings are important for understanding the factors and resources that enable homeless youth to withstand the vicissitudes of homelessness
This study employed a qualitative design with a semi-structured interview schedule, as this allowed the researcher to develop a rich understanding of the lived experiences of homeless street youth and the mechanisms that allow them to survive during adversity
Summary
Homeless youth are considered one of the most vulnerable groups in society as they are exposed to greater risks compared to other young adults. According to UNICEF [1], hundreds of millions of children are growing up on urban streets around the world. They, acknowledged that the exact number of street children is impossible to quantify, but the figures almost certainly run into millions across the world. In Ghana, the population of homeless youth is growing in cities such as. Headcounts of street children ranged from 35,000 in 2009 to 90,000 in 2013 [2,3]. The main reasons identified for this high rate of homelessness include poverty, disintegrated families and divorce, and the quest for freedom from parental control [4,5,6,7]
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