Although this cultural factor was the strongest correlative factor, the other domains in the study likewise were highly correlated with substance abuse amongst homeless young people. The authors stated that although drug abuse is often seen as a problem by social workers who deal with the homeless, for the homeless themselves, abuse is often seen as a useful coping strategy to deal with the challenges of their lives. The disaffection felt by young adults also suggests that there may be built-in resistance to adopting what is considered 'normal' behavior. Homeless persons who were involved in alcohol and drugs showed higher levels of identification with street culture and a greater likelihood of being involved in violent crimes in their pasts.

The implications of the findings, in the view of the researchers, were that homeless persons involved in drug and alcohol exhibited a more distinctive and more entrenched type of identification with homelessness. "Findings confirm the magnitude of alcohol/drug dependence among homeless...

2009). But this rather unsurprising correlation is somewhat limited, given that it is not certain what variable came first -- are persons with such dependencies more likely to identify with street culture and homeless culture because they are already vulnerable personalities to begin with, or does the state of homelessness drive many young people to drug dependence and alcoholism? The study did not attempt to determine which variable predicated the other.
References

Sarrica, F. (2008). Drugs prices and systemic violence: An empirical study. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 14(4), 391-415. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10610-008-9080-9

Thompson, S.J., Rew, L., Barczyk, a., McCoy, P., & Mi-Sedhi, a. (2009). Social estrangement:

Factors associated with alcohol or drug dependency among homeless, street-involved young adults. Journal of Drug Issues, 39(4), 905-929.