JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Introduction: While the risk factors associated with young people entering and becoming entrenched in street life have been thoroughly investigated, the peer-reviewed evidence is scarce to non-existent for rigorous interventions targeting social integration outcomes for young people who have experienced homelessness. From the limited research that has been done, emerging evidence signals that, while structural supports such as subsidized housing and social service providers are important, these resources alone are insufficient to help young people integrate into mainstream society. The overarching aim of this study is to assess whether and how rent subsidies and mentorship influence social integration outcomes for formerly homeless young people living in market rent housing in three Canadian cities. Methods and analysis: This is a convergent mixed-methods, open-label, parallel two-arm randomized controlled trial with 1:1 allocation embedded within a Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR) framework. The intervention will provide 24 young people (ages 16 – 26) who have transitioned out of homelessness and into market rent housing within the past year with rent subsidies for 24 months. Half of the young people will also be randomly assigned an adult mentor who has been recruited and screened by one of our three community partners. The primary outcome measures for this study are community integration (psychological and physical) and self-esteem. Secondary outcomes include: social connectedness, hope, and academic and vocational participation. Exploratory outcomes include: income, perceived housing quality, engulfment, psychiatric symptoms, and participant perspectives of intervention barriers and facilitators. Participants will be followed for 30 months. Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval for this study has been obtained from the Providence, St. Joseph’s and St. Michael’s Healthcare Research Ethics Board (REB # 18-251). In keeping with CBPAR methodology, we are committed to working with our community partners to disseminate evidence on “actionable” data and anticipate sharing our findings broadly to both academic and community-based audiences in a variety of formats ranging from scientific journal papers to community-based workshops. Trial registration number: NCT03779204.