The Systematic Integrative Narrative Review on Community Support Practices and Outcomes in Social and Community Housing

Abstract

This systematic integrative review provides a unique pioneering perspective on community support practices in social, community, and cooperative housing, improving our understanding of the practice and its outcomes. Two research questions guided this work: 1) What are the community support practices in social and community housing serving individuals in the context of socioeconomic deprivation in permanent housing structures? And 2) What are the outcomes of the community support practices in social and community housing. Studies describing and/or reporting on outcomes of community support practices in social and community housing (psychosocial, economic, and health/mental health) were included from the journals’ inception to September 2022. A total of 42 studies were included in the systematic review, of which 20 were qualitative, 14 quantitative, and eight mixed-method studies. Of them all, 34 studies reported on public housing, four on community housing, and four on cooperative housing. Results inform practitioners and decision makers on issues related to community practices in permanent supportive housing and their outcomes in relation to tenure orientations and potential impact. Community practice workers are pillars in housing settings who provide bridging, bonding, and linking that builds social capital in adverse conditions. This review provides insight into innovative research avenues in this domain, while bringing to the forefront the fundamental challenges of individual support pathways to collective empowerment, increased health needs, and unequalled peer-tenant support engagement, as well as their precarious conditions.