Being absent from home at least overnight without permission from a parent or caretaker.

Every year an estimated one to two million teenagers in the United States run away from home. Most return voluntarily within a few days. Some are aided by police and social agencies and eventually return home or are placed in alternative stable environments. About one- fourth become homeless street kids with no permanent source of adult support. They are exposed to sexual exploitation, drug addiction, violent crime, and the other harmful mental and physical effects of homelessness. Runaways include "throwaways," who leave with the overt or tacit approval of parents or caretakers, and "push-outs," who are turned out by parents who don't want them, as well as teens who run away because they have become dissatisfied with their home life.

Results of a research study released in 1990 provided the following estimates for...