Depressive Symptoms Among Homeless Adolescents: Key Factors

Introduction and Research Overview

This research and its subsequent data analysis aim to demonstrate the relationship between factors identified by interviewees and depression rates among homeless adolescents under 20 years of age. The data collected will be predominantly qualitative, as this is a social science study seeking to understand why homeless adolescents experience depression and to determine whether depression preceded homelessness or developed as a result of it.

The data analysis will seek to show the statistical correlation between recorded variables. The strength of the correlation will be derived from the similarity of responses regarding what caused participants' depression and what effects it had on their lives. The analysis will also examine central tendency measures — mean, mode, and median — to determine the correlation between variables in the research outcome.

Research Question

This research will be conducted primarily through literature review and interviews among participants. The question that defines the research is: What are the key factors that contribute to the depressive symptoms experienced by the homeless adolescent population?

Conceptual and Operational Definitions

Depressive Symptoms — Conceptual Definition

At the conceptual level, depressive symptoms are defined as a medical condition that an individual may experience due to varying factors, which also depend on the patient's age. Issues such as drug use, mental conditions, medical procedures, stage of life, and social or environmental conditions can all contribute to the onset of depression. An affected individual will typically feel sad, unimportant, and unable to live life in a normal way (MedicineNet, Inc., 2012).

Homeless Adolescents — Conceptual Definition

For the purposes of this research, homeless adolescents are defined as individuals who have no permanent home or physical address to which they can reliably return each day. In the places where they temporarily reside, there are no family members present, and the individuals do not consider these locations long-term abodes. They may occupy such spaces simply because they are available.

Depressive Symptoms — Operational Definition

Several observable signs may indicate that a teenager is suffering from depression. These include irritability, psychotic symptoms such as hearing or seeing things that are not real, and physical complaints like unexplained aches and pains. During a depressive episode, a teenager may feel they no longer want to live, cry frequently, experience extreme sadness, and develop urges to harm themselves — up to and including suicidal ideation. Additional signs include loss of interest in daily activities, changes in sleep patterns, loss of energy, and reckless behavior.

Homeless Adolescents — Operational Definition

For the purpose of this research, homeless adolescents are defined as females or males under the age of 20 who do not live with their families but instead reside in streets, drainage areas, with friends, in abandoned or occupied vehicles, in hotels, or in unused basements — and who have considered any of these locations a place of residence for more than one month. These individuals form the target population from which the research sample will be drawn.

Qualitative Research Design

This research seeks to collect information, feelings, and perspectives from affected individuals regarding their experiences of depression and its contributing causes as homeless teenagers. The interviews will also seek to establish whether depression among homeless teenagers was more severe before they became homeless or whether it intensified as a result of leaving their traditional home environments.

Information will be collected primarily through structured interviews conducted by trained field assistants who will be given a brief induction to the research and provided with an interview guide covering the key areas to be addressed during each session.