This study tested for associations between childhood adversity, adult
homelessness and contexts of developmental risk in households with
children. Data were drawn from the 2010 Washington State
Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, representative of the
population of Washington State residents. Considering adults in
households with children, those who experienced higher levels of
childhood adversity were more likely to have experienced homeless-
ness in adulthood. Meanwhile, a 10-factor index of cumulative devel-
opmental risk was independently associated with childhood adversity
and with adult homelessness. Adult homelessness appears to repre-
sent a circumstance through which past childhood adversities are
brought forward and associated with contexts of developmental risk
for subsequent generations of children. Read more.
Childhood Adversity, Adult Homelessness and the Intergenerational Transmission of Risk: A Population-representative Study of Individuals in Households with Children
Children and Family Social Work
Year: 2015