Early Life Psychosocial Stressors and Housing Instability among Young Sexual Minority Men: the P18 Cohort Study

Abstract

Homelessness and housing instability is a significant public health problem among young sexual minority men. While there is a growing body of literature on correlates of homelessness among sexual minority men, there is a lack of literature parsing the different facets of housing instability. The present study examines factors associated with both living and sleeping in unstable housing among n = 600 sexual minority men (ages 18-19). Multivariate models were constructed to examine the extent to which sociodemographic, interpersonal, and behavioral factors as well as adverse childhood experiences explain housing instability. Overall, 13 % of participants reported sleeping in unstable housing and 18 % had lived in unstable housing at some point in the 6 months preceding the assessment. The odds of currently sleeping in unstable housing were greater among those who experienced more frequent lack of basic needs (food, proper hygiene, clothing) during their childhoods. More frequent experiences of childhood physical abuse and a history of arrest were associated with currently living in unstable housing. Current enrollment in school was a protective factor with both living and sleeping in unstable housing. These findings indicate that being unstably housed can be rooted in early life experiences and suggest a point of intervention that may prevent unstable housing among sexual minority men.

Motivations for alcohol use to intoxication among young adult gay, bisexual, and other MSM in New York City: The P18 Cohort Study

“…with responses categorized as "lower," "middle," and "upper" class. Sexual orientation was measured using the 7-point Kinsey scale (Kinsey, Pomeroy, & Martin, 1948) and was dichotomized for analytic purposes as "exclusively homosexual" and "not exclusively homosexual," consistent with previous studies of this cohort (Halkitis & Figueroa, 2013;Krause et al, 2016). School enrollment was dichotomized as whether respondents were currently in school or not.…”

Employment Loss as a Result of COVID-19: a Nationwide Survey at the Onset of COVID-19 in US LGBTQ+ Populations

“…Sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) data are not regularly collected for national COVID-19 reports and previous national surveys reported LGBTQ+ household data, which can miss a large part of the LGBTQ+ population (Jones, 2017 ; Krause, 2021 ; Mirza et al, 2018 ; Movement Advancement Project, 2020 ). The lack of SOGI data is concerning given that sexual and gender minorities (SGM) often experience higher rates of adverse health outcomes, such as barriers to healthcare (Griffin et al, 2018 , 2020a ; Heck et al, 2006 ), homelessness (Castellanos, 2016 ; Ecker et al, 2019 ; Krause et al, 2016 ), mental health burdens (Russell & Fish, 2016 ; Su et al, 2016 ), and intimate partner violence (Walters et al, 2011 ). The economic disparities between SGM and non-SGM populations have existed before the COVID-19 pandemic (Carpenter et al, 2020 ; Charlton et al, 2018 ; The Williams Institute, 2019 ), and these disparities may continue to worsen during the pandemic as SGM in the US have experienced a greater risk of job loss and economic uncertainty compared to the non-SGM population, especially for Black LGBTQ+ households (Human Rights Campaign Foundation & PSB, 2020 ; Movement Advancement Project, 2020 ; Whittington et al, 2020 ).…”

Sexual risk classes among youth experiencing homelessness: Relation to childhood adversities, current mental symptoms, substance use, and HIV testing

“…Experiencing early adversities greatly impacts the risk for subsequent homelessness and risk behaviors. In one study among young men who have sex with men, the odds of being unstably housed were greater among those who more frequently experienced lack of basic needs (e.g., food, hygiene, clothing) and physical abuse during childhood [38]. One study found that 47% of YEH reported sexual abuse, 31% left home because they were sexually abused by their parents, 27% left home because they were emotionally abused by their parents, and 20% left home because of parental physical abuse [39].…”