Abstract
Runaway youth are at heightened risk for violence, substance use, suicide, and other high risk concerns. Qualitative studies have examined youth choices to leave home, involvement living on the streets, and lived experiences as stigmatized youth; however, findings from these various studies have never been analyzed together into a single synthesis of information. The purpose of this article is to synthesize the qualitative data using Qualitative Interpretative Meta-Synthesis. The researcher completed a systematic search to locate studies focused on girls who were or had been runaways, extracting themes from 10 articles to create new overarching themes that encompassed each of the articles. Results showed six new overarching themes: power/control, stigma, physical needs, safety, belonging, and acceptance. The themes of physical needs, safety, belonging, and acceptance are discussed using Maslow’s hierarchy of needs paradigm. Together, the themes are constructed to discuss how helping professionals can be better prepared to help meet the myriad needs of runaway girls by utilizing the hierarchy of needs presented by Maslow. This research article provides a unique insight into working with a vulnerable population by weaving together the experiences and words of the individuals whose real-life narratives have shaped the discussion.
Highlights
Helping professionals are often involved in the lives of young people who have run away from home (Kurtz, Lindsey, Jarvis, & Nackrud, 2000; Peled & Komem, 2020)
The themes are constructed to discuss how helping professionals can be better prepared to help meet the myriad needs of runaway girls by utilizing the hierarchy of needs presented by Maslow
The themes emerged from the synthesis in a way that mirrored the beginning stages of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
Summary
Helping professionals are often involved in the lives of young people who have run away from home (Kurtz, Lindsey, Jarvis, & Nackrud, 2000; Peled & Komem, 2020). In looking for research to inform practice, one finds that numerous qua-. M. Crawford litative studies have examined runaway youth and their choices to leave home, their involvement living on the streets, and their lived experiences as stigmatized youth. Crawford litative studies have examined runaway youth and their choices to leave home, their involvement living on the streets, and their lived experiences as stigmatized youth Findings from these various qualitative studies, have never been synthesized and analyzed together. A Qualitative Interpretative Meta-Synthesis (QIMS) accomplishes this. By synthesizing data from multiple sources, a broader, deeper, and richer understanding of the phenomenon is achieved
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