Emergency Homeless Shelter Research Articles

Dementia and mild cognitive impairment screening in an emergency homeless shelter.

Older adults represent the fastest growing segment of the homeless community. Little is known about the prevalence of dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in this population. Dementia and MCI screening using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) was incorporated into the standard senior evaluation for adult clients aged ≥ 55 in a large emergency homeless shelter. In a 6-week period, 104 of 112 (92.9%) assessments were positive for dementia or MCI using a standard cutoff of 26, and 81 (72.3%) were positive using a conservative cutoff of 23. There was no significant difference in MoCA scores based on sex or education level, and no significant correlation between age and MoCA score. Older adults experiencing homelessness may have a high likelihood of dementia or MCI. Routine MoCA screening in older adults experiencing homelessness is feasible and can help to identify services needed to successfully exit homelessness.

Emergency Homeless Shelter Flows by Age and Ethnicity and their Sensitivity to Rent in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Emergency Homeless Shelter Flows by Age and Ethnicity and their Sensitivity to Rent in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Emotional reactivity and parenting in families experiencing homelessness.

Parents are key protective systems in the lives of children experiencing homelessness. Evidence suggests that parent emotional reactivity, expression, and regulation play a critical role in promoting adaptive parenting behaviors. Studies of emotional reactivity in parents utilize different methods, including self-report, observations, and physiological measures. However, these methods are rarely evaluated together, particularly among disadvantaged families. The present study examined how subjective (i.e., self-report), observed, and physiological measures of parent emotional reactivity relate to each other and to observed parenting behaviors in problem-solving and teaching parent-child interaction tasks. Participants included fifty 4- to 7-year-old children and their caregivers staying in an emergency homeless shelter. Observed and subjective emotional reactivity were largely uncorrelated, except for positive emotions during problem-solving tasks. Adaptive parenting behavior was related to lower scores on measures of subjective and observed negative emotions and higher observed scores for positive emotions during problem-solving tasks, as well as higher observed scores of positive emotions during teaching tasks. Physiological reactivity was not related to parenting behaviors. Results suggest that associations of emotional reactivity with parenting behavior depend on the context of the parent-child interaction and how emotional reactivity is measured. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Self-regulation as promotive for academic achievement in young children across risk contexts

The link between self-regulation and academic achievement in young children is well-documented. However, few studies have examined the extent to which different aspects of self-regulation are more important for early numeracy and literacy for those in contexts of high cumulative risk, such as children experiencing homelessness. In the current study, 116 children ages 4;0–7;1 years (58 residing in an emergency homeless shelter and 58 from a community participant pool) completed assessments of math and reading, as well as multiple measures of self-regulation: executive function (EF), emotion regulation (ER), and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). Parents completed a questionnaire about their children’s behavioral regulation. We examined whether sample (i.e., shelter or community) moderated the association between each aspect of self-regulation and academic outcomes. Results showed a main effect of EF skills on early numeracy, and this relation did not differ across samples. Intervention efforts to promote academic competencies might specifically target EF in those who struggle with early EF skills regardless of risk context.

The Lived Experience of Mothers Who Are Homeless and Participated in an Occupational Therapy Leisure Craft Group

This phenomenological, qualitative, pilot investigation gained insight into the lived experience of mothers, living in an emergency homeless shelter, who participated in a twice weekly occupational therapy leisure craft group. This research applied the constructs of the Person-Environment-Occupation theoretical model along with concepts from occupational justice to provide occupational therapy services to an underserved population. Information was obtained using semi-structured interviews to explore what meaning was derived from participating in these occupational therapy group craft sessions. Informants verified content from existing literature regarding benefits of leisure participation and added the importance of creating an opportunity for self-care when faced with homelessness.

Ready? Set. Go! A school readiness programme designed to boost executive function skills in preschoolers experiencing homelessness and high mobility

ABSTRACT Converging evidence suggests that homeless and highly mobile children in the United States often begin school with limited school readiness skills, such as academic knowledge and socioemotional competencies. Research also indicates that executive function (EF) is foundational to learning and social skills in young children, including those experiencing homelessness. These findings suggest that school readiness could be improved by targeting EF skills. The current pilot study examined implementation and promise of Ready? Set. Go! (RSG) – a brief intervention developed to improve EF among high-risk preschoolers through teacher training, EF-focused activities, individualized child coaching, and parent education. Participants were 75 preschoolers from an emergency homeless shelter and community organization serving similarly disadvantaged families. Results indicated RSG was appealing to parents and teachers and could be implemented with high fidelity. Children who received RSG showed significantly greater improvements in their EF skills than comparison children 1 month after the intervention ended.

The Shelter Band: Homelessness, social support and self-esteem in a community music partnership

The transition from homelessness into mainstream society involves external factors, such as obtaining housing and employment. Research also indicates that social support and perceptions of self-efficacy are important psychological factors in escaping homelessness. Music interventions, such as participation in performing ensembles, have been shown to aid in the development of social skills among marginalized populations and improve participants’ psychological well-being. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of a music intervention on perceptions of social support and self-esteem among individuals experiencing homelessness. Members of The Shelter Band included residents at a large emergency homeless shelter in the Southeast United States, shelter staff and university music education students. The band rehearsed a variety of rock songs weekly and performed regularly for civic events. Researchers investigated the effects of band participation on perceptions of social support and self-efficacy using a mixed-method approach. Qualitative data were obtained over a three-year period through interviews with band members, shelter staff and the participant researchers. These data were transcribed and analysed for themes according to a priori and in vivo codes by the participant researchers. Social support and self-esteem were also specifically investigated by comparing differences in responses to the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL) between band members and non-member shelter residents. Qualitative data indicated that participants in The Shelter Band demonstrated improved perceptions of social support and self-esteem. In a few cases, participation in the band was identified as a key factor in individuals escaping decades-long chronic homelessness. Other themes emerged from participants, including reduced recidivism and improved case management. Quantitative data of perceptions of social support and self-esteem between Shelter Band members and non-member residents of The Shelter revealed no statistically significant results. As music educators continue to explore opportunities for their work, it is useful to consider collaborations with community partners. By involving shelter staff in The Shelter Band, staff and music educators were able to direct the intervention towards individuals’ needs. These collaborations can be beneficial for both the university and community partners. In addition, possibilities for this kind of socially responsive pedagogy in music teacher training are discussed.

Autonomic complexity and emotion (dys-)regulation in early childhood across high- and low-risk contexts.

Developing the ability to regulate one's emotions in accordance with contextual demands (i.e., emotion regulation) is a central developmental task of early childhood. These processes are supported by the engagement of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), a physiological hub of a vast network tasked with dynamically integrating real-time experiential inputs with internal motivational and goal states. To date, much of what is known about the ANS and emotion regulation has been based on measures of respiratory sinus arrhythmia, a cardiac indicator of parasympathetic activity. In the present study, we draw from dynamical systems models to introduce two nonlinear indices of cardiac complexity (fractality and sample entropy) as potential indicators of these broader ANS dynamics. Using data from a stratified sample of preschoolers living in high- (i.e., emergency homeless shelter) and low-risk contexts (N = 115), we show that, in conjunction with respiratory sinus arrhythmia, these nonlinear indices may help to clarify important differences in the behavioral manifestations of emotion regulation. In particular, our results suggest that cardiac complexity may be especially useful for discerning active, effortful emotion regulation from less effortful regulation and dysregulation.

Emergency homeless shelter use in the Dublin region 2012–2016: Utilizing a cluster analysis of administrative data

Arising out of a decade of economic recession and austerity, Ireland is currently in the grip of a severe housing crisis marked by weak housing supply, rapidly rising house prices and rents and a dramatic increase in homelessness that is placing severe pressure on the State's emergency accommodation system. This article utilises data from a national homelessness services database (PASS system), which captures live information on service user interactions for all state funded NGO and local authority homeless services, to examine the patterns of emergency accommodation use by the homeless population in Dublin City. The paper applies a k-means cluster analysis to determine different subgroups of Dublin's homeless population (n = 12,734) and analyses their rate of movement through homeless services between the years 2012 and 2016. A temporary cluster (78%) experienced a small number of homeless episodes for relatively short periods of time, while an episodic cluster (10%) experienced multiple homeless episodes also for a short period of time. The chronic cluster (12%) experienced a small number of homeless episodes but with long stays in emergency shelter. Results for Ireland show patterns similar to those reported in the US, Canada and Denmark, where a small number of chronic users of homeless accommodation account for a disproportionately large share of resources (i.e. 50% of total bed nights). The findings have implications for the operation of emergency homeless accommodation in Ireland and, in particular, the targeting of interventions and the re-directing of resources away from emergency accommodation responses towards a more effective emergency accommodation system for all stakeholders.

Effectiveness of an Occupational Therapy Work Readiness Program for Homeless Parents

Abstract Date Presented 4/19/2018 Homeless parents completed a 6-wk occupational therapy program at an emergency homeless shelter that addressed self-identified goals to improve work readiness skills. Significant gains in self-identified work readiness skills were revealed using goal attainment scaling as the outcome measure. Primary Author and Speaker: Winifred Schultz-Krohn Additional Authors and Speakers: Robert Carey, Ryan Dail, Paul Endish

334 Does the Closure of a Homeless Shelter Increase the Prevalence of Homelessness in the Emergency Department?

Emergency departments (EDs) are the primary providers of health care for the homeless, and also act as vital social safety-net institutions, providing vital resources (food, water, shelter) necessary for survival and subsistence. For example, one study found that nearly a quarter of homeless adults sought care in an ED when they first became homeless. We therefore hypothesized that the closure of our city’s largest emergency homeless shelter in August 2017 would be associated with a subsequent increase in the prevalence of homelessness among our ED patients. We conducted a cross-sectional before and after survey of a convenience sample of patients presenting to an urban, safety net ED in Atlanta, Georgia. Participants were surveyed over a 3-month period in 2016 and 1 year later following the closure of the homeless shelter. A team of trained research assistants administered a structured survey instrument. Patients were surveyed in all areas of the ED and at all times of the day. Patients were at least 18 years old, English-speaking, not incarcerated, and able to provide informed consent. 1,152 ED patients (55.5% [52.6 - 58.4] male; median age = 44 [IQR: 31 - 55]) completed the survey. The racial makeup of the sample was as follows: 70.8% [68.2 - 73.5] Black, 17.1% [14.9 - 17.6] White, 6.3% [4.9 - 7.7] Hispanic, 1.9% [0.8 - 2.9] Asian, and 3.9% [2.8 - 5.1] self-identified as “other.” Most patients had at least a High school education (40.51% [37.66 - 43.36] high school/GED; 23.75% [21.28 - 26.22] had at least some college, 17.24% [15.04 - 19.44] did not graduate High school and 18.55% [16.29 - 20.81] completed college. 47% [44.1 - 49.9] were unemployed, 15.5% [13.4 - 17.6] were employed part-time, and 37.5% [34.7 - 40.3] were employed full-time. With respect to housing insecurity, 30.04% [27.38 - 32.71] moved in with others to save money, 30.21% [27.54 - 32.88] lived with others but didn’t pay rent, 12.62% [10.69 - 14.56] skipped mortgage or rent payment, 8.87% [7.22 - 10.52] have been evicted, 20.45% [18.11 - 22.79] lived in a hotel or motel, 8.76% [7.12 - 10.39] lived in a place not meant for human habitation, 14.46% [12.43 - 16.50] slept in a shelter, and 13.0% [11.06 - 14.95] slept on the street. A generalized estimating equation revealed that exposure to homelessness among our patient population increased following the closing of the shelter (unadjusted OR = 1.25, 95% CI: 1.01 - 1.54, p = .04; adjusted OR = 1.38, 95% CI: 1.08 - 1.78, p = .01). We found a significant increase in the prevalence of homelessness at our safety net setting following the closure of Atlanta’s largest homeless shelter. Our study highlights that EDs are “first-stop” access sites for homeless persons. Given the well-documented association between homelessness, poor health, and repeat ED visits, our study suggests that EDs should expand and integrate the availability of homeless services to improve the health of these patients and to mitigate their reliance on ED services.

Developing homeless shelters through public–private partnerships: The case of the Red Door Family Shelter in Toronto

ABSTRACT This article examines the possibility of delivering much-needed social service facilities such as homeless shelters by integrating them into for-profit building developments through public–private partnerships. It draws on the case study of the Red Door Family Shelter in Toronto, a unique project that incorporates an emergency homeless shelter for families, women, and children into an upscale condominium apartment building. The study shows that interinstitutional collaborations enable public- and private-sector entities to realize their goals for urban development projects that neither could achieve on their own. In particular, innovative mixed-use development partnerships can enhance access to scarce development sites, augment project funding, generate community support for controversial projects, and share and mitigate project risks between the partners. Nevertheless, barriers to public–private mixed-use buildings include lengthy and complicated planning processes, challenges finding complementary land uses, and the need to carefully align the interests between the partners.

Taking the Learning from Service Learning into the Postcollege World

For 10 years, Virginia Wesleyan College (VWC) hosted a week-long on-campus emergency homeless shelter during the College’s short Winter Session. The mission of the extracurricular student-initiated, student-run project was to serve the homeless, raise awareness, dispel myths about homelessness, and reflect VWC’s mission. This research is a qualitative assessment of transferable-skill development and attitudinal change of alumni who, as students, held Shelter Manager positions. Results show that all former managers who responded to the survey think about the Shelter with some regularity, and each has continued their involvement with Shelter postcollege. Reported outcomes include changed stereotypes and broader worldviews, as well as the development of transferable skills, including interpersonal and communication skills, leadership, and teamwork. Respondents reported specific examples of ongoing impacts of Shelter in both their personal and professional lives. Research findings provide an assessment of this unique engaged learning experience specifically and contribute to the literature on postcollege outcomes of service learning more broadly.

Predictors of Academic Success in 9- to 11-Year-Old Homeless Children: The Role of Executive Function, Social Competence, and Emotional Control

Widening achievement gaps between homeless and highly mobile (HHM) youth and their peers highlight the need for research to understand effects of risk and adversity on development to promote resilience and positive adaptation. Youth living under the poverty line experience more risk and adversity, leading to difficulty in multiple domains including academic achievement. Effortful control has been established as a protective factor among young HHM children; however, the impact of other factors including social competence and emotional control on functioning in early adolescence remains less clear. The current study examined effortful control, social competence, and emotional control in adaptive processes in 86 children, aged 9 to 11, living in an emergency homeless shelter. Consistent with expectations, emotional control and social competence each contributed to academic achievement, above and beyond effortful control and IQ. Emotional control moderated effortful control on reading ability. Implications of these findings, including policy and practice, are discussed.

A climatological analysis of emergency homeless shelter openings in Long Beach, California, USA

Exposure to cold presents a serious risk to homeless persons, particularly on cold, rainy winter nights. Emergency homeless shelters operate in cities throughout the United States to provide residents refuge from dangerous weather; however, few of these shelters appear to have incorporated rigorous climatological analysis into their scheduling procedures. We have analyzed historical climate data for Long Beach, California, where limited funding and highly variable winter weather present serious challenges to shelter operators. Our analysis indicates that the existing schedule of shelter availability, between December 1 and March 15, is fairly effective in incorporating a large number of days where the temperature is below 4.4 °C (40 F) or precipitation occurs. On the other hand, we suggest that the schedule should be adjusted somewhat by accounting for both human and climatological factors. Human factors include the seasonal lag in cultural adaptation to cold and occasional unexpected delays in resource availability that prevents shelters from opening by December 1. Climatological factors include the significant variation in dangerous winter weather caused by El Niño-Southern Oscillation cycles, and perhaps, the long-term impact of climate change. Specifically, opening shelters a week or more earlier, particularly during La Niña years, would likely decrease the risk of cold-exposure to the affected homeless population. We feel that our approach could be applied effectively to aid emergency-shelter operators throughout the country, given their need to maximize access during the most dangerous weather conditions despite limited resources.

Expressed emotion in homeless families: A methodological study of the five-minute speech sample.

Conducted in an emergency homeless shelter, this study aimed to validate parents' expressed emotion (EE) from the Five-Minute Speech Sample (FMSS) with observed parenting practices in a very high-risk population and examine how different aspects of parents' EE, including positive emotional expressions, related to observed parenting and children's school adjustment. Using 3 different coding approaches, we assessed the reliability and validity of 4 aspects of the FMSS-critical statements, positive statements, negative affect, and warmth-in relation to negative and positive parenting behaviors and children's behavioral and relational adjustment in school. The FMSS was administered to 39 parents about their 4- to 7-year-old children. Parent-child dyads participated in a 45-min videotaped sequence of games and tasks later coded for parenting behavior. Results indicated that parents' warmth during the FMSS was related to more positive and effective observed parenting behaviors. Critical statements and negative affect during the FMSS were related to more coercive parenting behaviors. Negative affect also was related to teachers' reports of children's increased externalizing behavior, less prosocial behavior with peers, and more conflict with teachers. Criticism maintained associations with observed parenting, even for parents who provided less than 5 min of speech. This study provides preliminary but promising evidence for the validity of FMSS scores in a high-risk sample of families and, specifically, for aspects of the FMSS to be efficient correlates of parenting behavior and aspects of children's school adjustment. Challenges, limitations, and promising features of the FMSS for use with highly disadvantaged parents are discussed.

An On-Campus Homeless Shelter: The Sociological Imagination, Service-Learning, and Applied Sociology

This paper provides a case study of a unique approach to teaching about homelessness an on-campus winter emergency homeless shelter. This shelter provides an innovative and engaging pedagogical model tying together Mills’ concept of the sociological imagination, service-learning, and applied sociology. Examples illustrate various aspects of Mills’ perspective including: breaking down “us” and “them” boundaries; an understanding of structural issues; sociological praxis; making linkages and various levels of analysis; and opportunities for engaging wider audiences in the sociological perspective. [Article copies available for a fee from The Transformative Studies Institute. E-mail address: journal@transformativestudies.org Website: http://www.transformativestudies.org ©2011 by The Transformative Studies Institute. All rights reserved.]

Direct and Indirect Effects of Parenting on the Academic Functioning of Young Homeless Children

Research Findings: Effects of parenting quality on the academic functioning of young homeless children were examined using data from 58 children ages 4 to 7 and their parents during their stay at an emergency homeless shelter. Parenting quality, child executive function, child intellectual functioning, and risk status were assessed in the shelter, and teacher reports of academic functioning were obtained when the children began kindergarten or 1st grade. As hypothesized, parenting quality was associated with children's academic success, and this effect was mediated by executive function skills in the child. Parenting quality also had a moderating effect on risk, consistent with a protective role of high-quality parenting among children with higher risk levels. Concomitantly, children with higher risk and lower parenting quality appeared to be more vulnerable to academic problems. Practice or Policy: In homeless families, parenting may play an especially important role in academic success through multiple pathways, including the development of executive function skills in their children. Policies and practices to support parents and foster the executive function skills of young children in homeless families may be important strategies to promote child academic success. Implications for intervention efforts with homeless parents and children are discussed.

Sunset Years in Sunny Florida: Experiences of Homelessness Among the Elderly

Many people think of Florida as the Mecca for the retired and elderly, where old people spend their days on the golf course and their evenings at the mahjongg table or perhaps the shuffleboard court. Those who have traveled through The Villages, an immense elderly community northwest of Orlando, will recognize that this image of Florida's elderly is not entirely without foundation. At the same time, in Florida and around the nation, many elderly people are not worried as much about their golf handicap as they are about being poor and homeless. Although at present the elderly make up only a small portion of the total poor and homeless populations, their numbers are growing as the population continues to age (Wright, Donley, & Dietz, 2009). This article culls insights from focus groups and interviews that I have conducted with poor and homeless elderly Floridians over the past 4 years. Most of my participants are from central Florida, but several are from Miami-Dade County. Data were collected in emergency and transitional homeless shelters, subsidized housing complexes for seniors, and permanent housing complexes for the formerly homeless and at feeding programs. These stories highlight and dramatize the many issues that poor and homeless elderly people across the nation face in their daily lives. DEFINITION OF ELDERLY When discussing the elderly poor and homeless, it is important to clarify exactly who is being discussed. In the general vernacular, elderly means those who are 65 or older, but among the homeless, it has been suggested that the elderly category begins much earlier, as early as age 50 in many studies. Indeed, more and more researchers use 50 as their starting point because by age 50, many homeless people already exhibit the signs and symptoms of advancing age and yet are not eligible for programs such as Medicare and might not be for another 15 years. Because living as a homeless person ages one prematurely, much contemporary research defines the elderly homeless as those 50 years old and older (see, e.g., National Coalition for the Homeless, 2006). Many programs for the poor and housed elderly are also serving people under age 65; some programs begin at age 55, others at age 62-an explicit recognition that social and economic conditions can strongly influence the aging process. For purposes of the present work, I treat as elderly poor housed and homeless people 50 years of age or older. STORIES FROM AN EMERGENCY HOMELESS SHELTER There are two ways that elderly people come to be homeless: they can be longtime homeless people who age into the category of elderly, or they can be elderly people who first become homeless after they are elderly (Wright et al., 2009). Seven of the nine elderly (over 50) participants in a focus group at an emergency homeless shelter in Orlando, Florida, were experiencing homelessness for the first time (i.e., were in the middle of their first homeless episode). While their specific reasons for becoming homeless were all individualized, two general themes were present: fallout from a declining economy and the loss of loved ones. Many of the participants had lived their entire lives in precarious situations, such as with roommates or family members or maintaining an apartment while working two hourly-wage jobs. Many had never been in a stable residential or financial situation. Once the economy began to falter, friends or relatives who were willing to take them in and provide housing could no longer afford to do this (or chose for some reason not to allow the situation to continue). In addition, economic decline wiped out many of the hourly wage jobs that my participants relied on. In still other cases, participants had spent their adult lives caring for family members who then died and whose deaths eliminated a former income source (e.g., a pension), with homelessness the immediate result. Rosenheck, Bassuk, and Salomon (1999) and others have reported that the death of loved ones is a common pathway to homelessness among elderly people. …

Asthma and Behavior in Homeless 4- to 7-Year-Olds

Low-income, urban, ethnic minority children have higher rates of asthma, more severe symptoms, and more management issues, as well as high risk for academic and behavior problems. This study focused on asthma reported in young children who resided in a family emergency homeless shelter. Asthma rates were considered along with their relation to hospitalization and emergency department use and behavior that is important for school success, including cognitive function, conduct, and academic functioning. A total of 104 children (age 4.0-7.5 years) and parents were recruited while residing in an urban emergency homeless shelter for families. Children had no previously identified developmental delays and spoke English proficiently. Parents reported whether the child experienced asthma, as well as emergency department use and hospitalization. Parents and teachers completed measures of child inattention/hyperactivity and behavior problems. Cognitive function of children was directly assessed. Asthma was reported for 27.9% of children, approximately 3 times the national average. Children with asthma had been hospitalized more often, showed higher levels of inattention/hyperactivity and behavior problems, and evidenced lower academic functioning. Young children in homeless family emergency shelters have high rates of asthma and related problems that could lead to higher hospitalization rates, more behavioral problems, and lower academic functioning at school. Screening and treatment of children who stay in emergency family shelters may be particularly important for reducing risks associated with asthma in highly mobile, low-income families.