While the reasons teens run away are plentiful, about 41
percent cite family dynamics as their main reason for leaving.
Teens also run away because of peer pressure or troubles
at school. Some are driven by problems with alcohol
Friends/Relatives 47.0%
Unknown 30.5%
Personal Funds 6.7%
Shelters/Soup Kitchens 6.5%
Panhandling 2.3%
Detention/Police 1.8%
Prostitution/Sex Industry 1.7%
Stealing 1.6%
P/T Employment 0.9%
Selling Drugs 0.7%
F/T Employment 0.3%
Means of Survival on the Street
Male 24.5%
Female 75.5%
Gender of Caller
10 1.0%
11 0.6%
12 1.5%
13 4.0%
14 8.1%
15 14.1%
16 21.6%
17 25.1%
18 9.4%
19 6.5%
20* 3.5%
21* 1.4%
Unknown 3.2%
Reported Age of Caller
*started tracking 10/01/2001
Family Dynamics 41.4%
Peers /Social 14.1%
Youth Services 8.5%
School /Education 7.1%
Mental Health 6.1%
Alcohol /Drug Use 3.9%
Physical Abuse 3.6%
Emotional/Verbal Abuse 3.0%
Economics 2.4%
Transportation 2.2%
Judicial System 2.1%
Neglect 1.6%
Health 1.5%
1.4%
Gay/Lesbian/ Transgendered /
Questioning
Sexual Abuse/Assault 1.1%
Problems Cited by Callers
1–3 Days 42.6%
4–7 Days 21.7%
1–4 Weeks 15.4%
1–2 Months 10.5%
2–6 Months 4.5%
Over 6 Months 5.3%
Amount of Time Spent on
the Street at Time of Call
Teen Runaways
Statistics of National Runaway
Switchboard Callers
Source: National Runaway Switchboard.
Teen Runaways (TI) 10/30/03 2:30 PM Page 13
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and drugs, while some are seeking escape from emotionally
or verbally abusive living situations. Still others leave
because they feel neglected and seek to stir up attention by
fleeing. Mental health can sometimes figure in to a teen’s
decision to leave home, and many kids living on the streets
suffer from some sort of mental disorder. Issues relating to
sexuality can also cause teens to run because gay, lesbian,
and transgender teenagers often feel like they do not belong
anywhere, even at home.
No matter what their backgrounds or reasons for leaving
are, all teen runaways share a desire to escape their situation
and believe that running away is the best way to do so.
The fact that many teen runaways would prefer to live on
the streets is a testament to how unsafe they feel at home.