By now, Hawaii residents should know that “the homeless” is not one homogeneous type, but people of vastly differing circumstances with one thing in common: They live without permanent shelter. Similarly, a new study reveals a wide range of risk factors among Oahu’s street youth — important findings that must be used as a springboard for action to prevent our homeless young from turning into chronic homeless adults.

The Street Youth Study conducted by Waikiki Health, Hale Kipa and the University of Hawaii Center on the Family interviewed 151 homeless young people between ages 12 and 24 in Waikiki, downtown and the homeless camp near the Waianae Small Boat Harbor.

The study found a highly vulnerable population, with many risk factors borne of family dysfunction. Among the grim findings:

>> Fifty percent had parents with substance abuse problems.

>> Sixty-one percent had parents who had been incarcerated.

>> More than 77 percent had been emotionally, physically or sexually abused.

>> Forty-eight percent had been in juvenile detention.

These were among the factors that led to the youths becoming homeless, said lead researcher Sarah Yuan; most of those with substance-abusing parents, for instance, had left that situation but ended up on the streets.

In Hawaii’s ongoing struggle against homelessness, priority must be on our children and youth. State Child Welfare Services need to be vigilant and proactive, of course, whenever abuse is suspected. But each situation requires careful weighing for the sake of the child, Yuan pointed out, since keeping family units intact has been shown to motivate adults out of homelessness.

As for foster care, it’s not always the happy remedy many would like to believe. It’s concerning that 40 percent of the study’s respondents had been in foster care — a finding that sheds light on the fact that many “age out” of the foster-care system unprepared for adult responsibilities, such as livable job skills and ability to find and keep a home.

Another troubling finding: 44 percent of respondents were Hawaiian or part-Hawaiian. This disproportionate ethnic representation must raise a red flag, given other studies that show Native Hawaiians are disproportionately represented among the prison population here.

It falls on us all as a community to help change the trajectory of at-risk lives for the better. But it especially behooves institutions such as the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Kamehameha Schools — with the financial wherewithal and the mission to help Native Hawaiian beneficiaries — to step up involvement via family-strengthening and educational programs that could ward off homelessness.

Overall, the fact that 6 of every 10 respondents said their family had been homeless in the past should be a point of concern, given socio- economic cycles that tend to repeat. Also, nearly half (48 percent) had experienced homelessness for the first time with their families.

Public parks and tent encampments should not be breeding grounds for a next generation of Hawaii people living that same way. More attention and resources must be placed on the formative adolescent and teen years.

Among the bright spots is Waikiki Health’s Youth Outreach (YO!) center, a drop-in facility where minors can hang out for camaraderie, and for support services. The Street Youth study suggests areas of vulnerability; it’s hoped that targeted interventions and support can be developed to guide youngsters onto a better path.

As for actual housing: Government leaders and developers must stop procrastinating on affordable units so desperately needed for Hawaii’s people. Start now on that future housing for today’s keiki.

Each statistic in the Street Youth Study represents real lives on our Oahu streets, young lives that need to be diverted from chronic homelessness. We cannot afford — financially or societally — to allow cycles of homelessness to take hold and perpetuate.