1-168 - The Developmental Impact of Street Life: Longitudinal Research in Three Brazilian Cities

Session Type: Poster Symposium

Integrative Statement

Despite recent improvements in the global economy, nearly one quarter of the world’s population lives in extreme poverty. Street youth – children and adolescents who work, play, and sometimes sleep on city streets –represent a visible sub-group of impoverished young people. These youngsters have been portrayed in contradictory ways by scholars, practitioners, and policy makers. Some argue that street youth are experiencing orderly development within a larger context of poverty, whereas others contend they are at developmental risk. This lack of agreement stems in large part from data limitations: virtually all prior studies have been cross-sectional, offering limited insight into developmental processes.

This poster symposium will present initial findings from a longitudinal mixed methods multisite study of Brazilian street youth. Brazil is a continent-sized nation with the world’s 5th largest population, and street youth are present throughout the country. The study was conducted in three regions with distinct histories and economic conditions. Its overarching goal was to identify factors that promote or hinder healthy development among street youth. The first poster will describe strategies used to recruit and retain youth in the longitudinal study. The second and third posters will examine physical health status and subjective well-being, respectively. The fourth poster focuses on sexual behaviors in the full sample of youth, and the sixth poster uses a multiple case study design to explore the experience of a subset of sexual minority youth. Taken together, the presentations will offer unique insight into their lives of an understudied subset of impoverished youth.

Sub Unit

• Race, Ethnicity, Culture, Context

Chairs

• Marcela Raffaelli, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

• Silvia Helena Koller, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul

Individual Presentations

• 1. Longitudinal Research with Street-Involved Children and Adolescents: Methodological Challenges and Strategies - Presenting Author: Juliana Santana, 10Charge; Silvia Helena Koller, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul; Normanda Morais, 10Charge; Carlos Jose Nieto, Universidad Federal de Rio Grande do Sul; Marcela Raffaelli, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

• 2. Physical Health of Street-Involved Brazilian Youth: Status and Correlates - Presenting Author: Marcela Raffaelli, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Silvia Helena Koller, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul

• 3. Subjective well-being of adolescents in street situation of three Brazilian State capitals - Presenting Author: Normanda Morais, 10Charge; Rebeca Ferreira Lima, Department of Psychology

• 4. Sexual history, sexual risk behaviors and sexual violence among street involved adolescents in three Brazilian capitals - Presenting Author: Carlos José Nieto Silva, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul; Silvia Helena Koller, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul

• 5. Sexual orientation of street-involved adolescents in Salvador, Brazil: A qualitative examination of risk and protective factors - Presenting Author: Juliana Santana, 10Charge; Lucas Vezedek Oliveira, Illinois State Univ