ABSTRACT
Contemporary runaways enter into an underworld of shelters, drifting from “friend” to “friend” or making their own way directly on the streets. The disorganized, often volatile families from which runaways typically emerge have influenced behaviors long before the young people leave. Family abuse was a strong predictor of the types of social networks in which runaways moved. Adolescents from abusive families were more likely to affiliate with deviant peers than were those who had not suffered from serious abuse at home. Decomposition of effects indicates that a history of abuse within the family puts in motion a series of behavioral and social consequences for runaway girls that increase their likelihood of further victimization and emotional distress. Family abuse therefore was predicted to be associated with the total amount of time the adolescent had spent on his or her own, affiliations with deviant peers, and various high-risk behaviors. Chronic runaways and homeless youth lose important developmental ground educationally and socially.
