Who participates in PATHS?
Recruitment, demographics, and engagement over time
Last data pull: July, 2026
PATHS is a longitudinal study of people experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles County. This page describes who is in the study: how many people have enrolled, their demographic and housing characteristics, how they compare to LA County’s broader unsheltered population, and how their engagement with the study has changed over time.
About this sample
Everything on this page reflects the PATHS representative sample: participants recruited through the Los Angeles County Homeless Count Demographic Survey fieldwork or through targeted recruitment at unsheltered hotspots. Participants recruited through other channels are not included.
For more on how PATHS recruits and follows participants, see the published study protocol.
At a glance
Between 2022 and 2026, 2,481 people enrolled in the PATHS representative sample. Of these, 1,134 (46%) completed a monthly survey in the last six months and are considered currently engaged.
Participant characteristics
The table below shows the demographic and housing-history profile of everyone enrolled in PATHS, alongside the subset currently engaged.
| Characteristic | All enrolled N = 2,4811 |
Currently engaged N = 1,1341 |
|---|---|---|
| Age | ||
| 18-24 | 165 (6.7%) | 74 (6.5%) |
| 25-39 | 1,088 (43.9%) | 501 (44.2%) |
| 40-49 | 616 (24.8%) | 293 (25.8%) |
| 50-59 | 416 (16.8%) | 177 (15.6%) |
| 60+ | 196 (7.9%) | 89 (7.8%) |
| Sex | ||
| Male | 1,375 (55.4%) | 601 (53.0%) |
| Female | 1,044 (42.1%) | 513 (45.2%) |
| Neither male or female | 41 (1.7%) | 14 (1.2%) |
| Prefer not to answer | 21 (0.8%) | 6 (0.5%) |
| Race / ethnicity | ||
| White (NH) | 631 (25.5%) | 291 (25.7%) |
| Black (NH) | 606 (24.5%) | 253 (22.3%) |
| Asian American (NH) | 33 (1.3%) | 17 (1.5%) |
| Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NH) | 17 (0.7%) | 6 (0.5%) |
| American Indian/Alaskan Native (NH) | 28 (1.1%) | 13 (1.1%) |
| Hispanic or Latino (alone or in combination) | 969 (39.1%) | 472 (41.6%) |
| Multiracial or another race | 194 (7.8%) | 82 (7.2%) |
| Years experiencing homelessness | ||
| Less than 1 year | 402 (16.5%) | 204 (18.2%) |
| 1-4 years | 985 (40.3%) | 448 (40.0%) |
| 5-9 years | 620 (25.4%) | 286 (25.5%) |
| 10 years or more | 436 (17.8%) | 183 (16.3%) |
| NH=non-Hispanic | ||
| 1 n (%) | ||
How PATHS compares to LA County
The plot below compares PATHS participants to the LA County 2022–2024 unsheltered population estimate (from the Los Angeles County Homeless Count Demographic Survey). The “By recruitment year” tab shows whether the PATHS sample is shifting in demographics over time.
Hover on a dot to see the exact percentage.
PATHS’ sample composition over recruitment years. Hover over a line or point to see the category and exact percentage.
Engagement over time
Response rate to monthly surveys during the first six months after enrollment. The tabs below show the distribution overall, by recruitment year, and stratified by race/ethnicity, sex, age, and last known housing status.
Note: participants recruited in 2026 are still early in follow-up. 99% of them enrolled less than six months before this data pull, so they haven’t yet had the chance to complete all six follow-up surveys. Their response rates are understated and will rise as data collection continues.
Housing status at each participant’s most recent monthly observation. Participants who preferred not to answer on the housing question are excluded.
Location at enrollment
Where participants were staying when they enrolled, by Service Planning Area (SPA), based on the location reported in their first monthly survey. Hover over an SPA to see the number of participants.
Service Planning Areas (SPAs) are eight geographic subdivisions of LA County used for service planning, resource allocation, and reporting. Map shows the 1,730 participants whose first monthly survey location could be assigned to an SPA. 176 of the 1,906 participants who completed a first monthly survey (9%) did not report a location and are excluded; percentages are calculated excluding them.