Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38781159›Full record

ArticlePloS one2024

"It's like your days are empty and yet there's life all around": A mixed methods, multi-site study exploring boredom during and following homelessness.

Carrie Anne Marshall, Abrial Cooke, Julia Holmes, Jordana Bengall, Suliman Aryobi, Brooke Phillips, Rosemary Lysaght, Rebecca Gewurtz

Abstract readMulticenter Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Effectiveness of Interventions for Meaningful Activity Participation in Homelessness: A Systematic Review.Canadian journal of occupational therapy. Revue canadienne d'ergotherapie · 2024
    Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Carrie Anne MarshallSocial Justice in Mental Health Research Lab, School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-0592-7716
Abrial CookeSocial Justice in Mental Health Research Lab, School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Julia HolmesSocial Justice in Mental Health Research Lab, School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Jordana BengallSocial Justice in Mental Health Research Lab, School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Suliman AryobiSocial Justice in Mental Health Research Lab, School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Brooke PhillipsSocial Justice in Mental Health Research Lab, School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
Rosemary LysaghtSchool of Rehabilitation Science, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-8845-5936
Rebecca GewurtzSchool of Rehabilitation Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTo identify experiences of boredom and associations with psychosocial well-being during and following homelessness.

methodsUsing a convergent, mixed-methods explanatory design, we conducted quantitative interviews with 164 participants) (n = 102 unhoused; n = 62 housed following homelessness) using a 92-item protocol involving demographic components and seven standardized measures of psychosocial well-being. A sub-sample (n = 32) was approached to participate in qualitative interviews. Data were analyzed by group (unhoused; housed). Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics designed to generate insights into boredom, meaningful activity engagement, and their associations with psychosocial well-being during and following homelessness. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Quantitative and qualitative findings were integrated at the stage of discussion.

resultsQuantitative analyses revealed small to moderate correlations between boredom and increased hopelessness (rs = .376, p < .01), increased drug use (rs = .194, p < .05), and lowered mental well-being (rs = -.366, p < .01). There were no statistically significant differences between unhoused and housed participants on any standardized measures. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that housing status was not a significant predictor of boredom or meaningful activity engagement (p>.05). Qualitative interviews revealed profound boredom during and following homelessness imposing negative influences on mental well-being and driving substance use.

conclusionsBoredom and meaningful activity are important outcomes that require focused attention in services designed to support individuals during and following homelessness. Attention to this construct in future research, practice, and policy has the potential to support the well-being of individuals who experience homelessness, and to contribute to efforts aimed at homelessness prevention.

Indexed as

BoredomIll-Housed PersonsAdultFemaleHumansMaleMental HealthMiddle Aged

Identifiers

PMID38781159
PMCPMC11115236

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.