Without A Home: The National Youth Homelessness Survey

TABLE 27
Self-esteem
Levels of self-esteem RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS ON SELF-ESTEEM % (NUMBER)
POSITIVE
self-esteem
1. Very positive levels of self-esttem
(respondents agreed ‘Strongly’ or ‘Somewhat’
with all 12 statements)
2. Positive levels of self-esteem (respondents
agreed with 7 to 11 statements)
13.4% (140)
36.4% (381)
MODERATE 3. Moderate levels of self-esteem 35.7% (374)
LOW LEVELS
of self-esteem
4. Low levels of self-esteem (respondents
disagreed with 7 to 11 statements)
5. Very low levels of self-esteem (respondents
disagreed ‘Strongly’ or ‘Somewhat’ with all 12
statements)
11.1% (116)
3.3% (35)
49.9%
of
youth surveyed had
positive levels of self-esteem
Importantly, half of the young people surveyed (49.9%) had positive levels of self-esteem,
and 13.4% had very high levels of self-esteem. A much smaller percentage reported low
levels of self-esteem (14.3%). Males were more likely to report positive self-esteem (52.7%)
than females (48%) or transgender/gender non-binary youth (41%). Likewise gender
non-binary and sexual minority youth were more likely to have high levels of self-esteem
(52.2%) than LGBTQ2S youth.
A history of housing instability is also an important factor. Young people who only
experienced homelessness once had higher levels of self-esteem. Relatedly, young people
with a history of housing instability were much less likely to report positive self-esteem
(57.6%) compared to those who have been homeless more than once (48.8%) and
especially those with five or more experiences (45.2%).
WITHOUT A HOME: THE NATIONAL YOUTH HOMELESSNESS SURVEY
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