From Instability to Recovery: Mapping Youth Housing Trajectories with Life History Calendar
Thye Peng Ngo & Sara Semborski
What the paper says
Youth homelessness is widely studied, yet little research traces developmental housing pathways across time. This study used a life-course lens to explore how youth navigate instability from childhood into emerging adulthood, and how connection, structure, and meaning-making shape recovery. By mapping temporal movement, we identify turning points that shift trajectories toward stability. Eight youth (ages 21-26) enrolled in a cash-transfer program participated in Life History Calendar interviews to reconstruct housing trajectories and contextual life events. Transcripts and calendars were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis, incorporating within-case mapping and cross-case comparison. Eight interrelated themes traced developmental pathways into and out of homelessness. Early instability stemmed from caregiving rupture, institutional displacement, and accumulated adversity. Adolescence was marked by survival-based autonomy, mistrust, and systems that supported and surveilled simultaneously. In emerging adulthood, youth rebuilt connections through peers, identity-affirming community, and structured housing programs. Recovery was anchored in belonging, stability, and meaning-making rather than individual effort alone. Youth homelessness unfolds as a developmental process shaped by intersecting trauma, inequity, and adaptive coping. Findings highlight the need for policies and interventions that reduce surveillance barriers and expand identity-affirming, autonomy-supportive housing models. Developmentally grounded support may strengthen long-term stability and engagement.
Evidence weight
Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40
| F · citation impact | 0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20 |
| M · momentum | 0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07 |
| V · venue signal | 0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03 |
| R · text relevance † | 0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20 |
† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.