Dance as an artform touches the biopsychosocial dimensions of people and as such is increasingly used as a vehicle to improve the quality of life of diverse populations in the community. Yet little is known about how dance classes are experienced by marginalized populations. The purpose of this action research was to explore the potential of dance…

Homeless young women experience high levels of stress, challenges to mental health, substance use and abuse, and a lack of housing or of secure housing. This article explores one of the findings from a longitudinal qualitative study designed to follow homeless young women for a 2-year period as they make efforts to transition out of homelessness.…

This research explored the experiences of 8 street-involved youth (4 male, 4 female) between the ages of 20 and 27 living in north-central British Columbia. The analysis was carried out in 3 phases based on the narrative approach developed by Lieblich, Tuval-Mashiach, and Zilber (1998). The narratives represented the holistic experiences of the…

Explores stress and depression levels in Canadian street youth and ways in which they cope. Results show that street youth (n=27) reported more stress and depression than non-runaways (n=27). Street youth were more likely to engage in acts of self-harm and to use drugs and alcohol, while non-runaways used more productive problem solving and…