Experiences Of Homeless People Research Articles

노숙인의 정신적 습관 형성에 영향을 미친 경험

Mental habits could be considered a major determinant not only of physical health behaviors and status but also of mental health. However, there has been limited research on the concept of mental habits in Korea and internationally. As homeless people experience mental health issues more frequently than the general population, early detection and management could be crucial for improving their mental health. Therefore, this study aims to conduct a phenomenological study to discover common experiences of the homeless, focusing on the formation process of mental habits. Through the analysis of in-depth interviews with 12 homeless people, 21 themes, 11 theme clusters, and 6 categories were derived. The results suggested that the mental habits of the homeless were formed through experiences including social disconnection, addiction, unethical behavior, economic difficulties, social exclusion, chronic problematic environments, and intrinsic motivations for life. From childhood to the current homeless status, various experiences have led to complicated interactions affecting the interviewees in multiple ways: a single event could lead to multiple mental habits, or a combination of experiences could develop a single mental habit. Therefore, policies for homeless people should not simply aim to provide shelter but should also aim to end homelessness through supports for sustainable living. This should be built on an understanding of their experiences including life before homelessness, the process of becoming homeless, and their experiences as homeless individuals. Based on this, the researchers' policy recommendations are as follows: First, programs for the homeless should proactively aim to eliminate discrimination. Second, interventions for mental habits should incorporate specific and non-specific interventions. Lastly, interventions for the mental health of homeless people should focus on creating intrinsic motivations.

The Pet Paradox: Uncovering the Role of Animal Companions During the Serious Health Events of People Experiencing Homelessness

ABSTRACT Despite the prevalence of animal companions in the lives of homeless individuals and the established benefits and complications offered by animals during serious illness and end-of-life (EOL), little is known about the experiences of homeless people who have animal companions and chronic illness. Two subsamples from a larger study – longitudinal medical documentation of homeless palliative-care patients who discussed animal companionship during their care (n = 11) and interviews with cross-sector service providers (n = 3) who spoke to the role of animals in care – were analyzed using an interpretive description approach. Results showcased three major themes: (1) healing benefits to animal companionship during concurrent homelessness and serious illness; (2) choosing animal companionship over formal housing and health services; (3) when animal companionship’s consequences outweigh the benefits. These findings provide practical implications for clinical assessment, programing, and service expansion for persons with animal companions and future translational science to benefit animal companion owners experiencing serious illnesses while homeless.

Experiences of homeless people who use psychoactive substances: an interpretative phenomenological study

PurposeHomelessness and psychoactive substance (PS) use are both determinants of physical and mental ill health, with the homeless population using, and dying of PSs more frequently than the general population. However, there is a gap in research on the real-world implications psychoactive substance use (PSU) has on the homeless population. This study aims to explore the experiences of PSU from the perspective of homeless users.Design/methodology/approachPurposive sampling was adopted to recruit participants and semi-structured interviews collected data from participants, with interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) generating common themes from the data gathered.FindingsFour participants were interviewed. The themes generated were family and close relationships; cyclical patterns; mistrust in people and services; and low self-worth.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is limited by potential bias from researchers who built relationships with participants through the data collection process. Despite efforts to remove this bias, through reflexivity throughout data collection and analysis, some bias may be still present. The researchers saw the participants as vulnerable people who were striving to overcome adversity. Such conception of the participants is reflective of how the participants portrayed themselves. The small sample is suitable for IPA purposes. Of course, it could have been possible that if different participants had been recruited or more participants had been recruited, then there could have been different themes and findings. IPA prides itself on its idiographic focus.Practical implicationsMore research is needed on a wider scale to assess the extent and cause of these issues. Increased education and dissemination of research such as this is required to break down stigma within the public and guide policy change in professional services.Originality/valueThis paper interpretatively presents themes generated by semi-structured interviews with four homeless PSUs. As such, these individuals are vulnerable and have faced adversity throughout life from both society and the services they use. Their vulnerability leads to a cycle of substance use and a feeling of low self-worth, which is perpetuated by the perceived views of those around them.

거리 노숙인의 건강 수준이 탈노숙 시도 경험에 미치는 영향

This study verified the mediating effect of the experiences of homeless people on the street in using relevant support services on the relationship between their health and attempts to escape homelessness. The analytic results serve as data for preparing more effective policies to support homeless people and ultimately encourage their successful escape from homelessness. A survey was conducted with 116 homeless people living on the street in the Busan area. The survey results showed that their deteriorating health had a positive effect on their experiences with support services for homeless people and an escape from homelessness. Second, their experiences using relevant support services had a mediating effect on the relationship between their health and attempts to escape homelessness. Based on the analytic results of this study, measures are proposed for encouraging homeless people on the street to successfully escape homelessness. First, the facility-oriented street homeless support service delivery system should be diversified, and second, services based on personal needs such as self-reliance or facility protection should be developed and distributed. Third, service information accessibility should be improved so that homeless people can recognize the services they need. This study proposed a realistic alternative by empirically identifying the relationship between the experience of using social welfare services and the experience of leaving homelessness.

Homelessness and COVID-19 in New Zealand: Challenges, emergency responses, and implications for disaster risk reduction

People experiencing homelessness have traditionally received limited attention in disaster research and disaster risk reduction policy. The COVID-19 pandemic has shed light on the vulnerable conditions of urban homelessness during emergency with unprecedented response efforts. Focusing on Aotearoa New Zealand, this research analyses homeless people's experiences of the COVID-19 and examines the policies and actions developed by government agencies and local organisations. The study highlights that while the homeless did not perceive the virus as a threat the COVID-19 framework with border closures and lockdowns had direct impacts on their livelihoods. The emergency policies focused mainly on homeless who are rough sleepers with a strong emphasis on emergency shelters. The study finds that while effective in temporally housing the homeless, the emergency shelters were often inappropriate to cater for homeless needs and lacked long-term views to transit towards sustainable solutions to homelessness. We also point out issues linked to coordination across agencies, leadership and resources needed for both effective emergency management and disaster risk reduction.

꽃동네 노숙인의 영성 체험 연구

이 연구의 목적은 꽃동네 노숙인 시설에서 거주하는 생활자들이 생활 속에서 경험하고 있는 영성 체험의 의미와 본질을 밝히는 것으로, 그들이 체험한 영성이 삶에 어떠한 변화를 가져오는지 보다 정확하고 풍부한 이해를 위해 Giorgi의 기술적 현상학 연구로 접근하였다.BR 본 연구에서 12명의 연구참여자들의 영적 체험의 구조를 분석한 결과 139개의 의미 단위, 12개의 드러난 주제, 5개의 본질적 주제를 구성하였다. 본질적 주제는 세속의 세찬 비바람 속에 꺾인 영혼, 애벌레가 허물을 벗듯이 과거의 허물 벗기, 화려한 나비로 부활하기 위한 준비, 나비가 되어 푸른 하느님의 나라로 날아오르기, 영성의 탈신비화: 일상생활 속으로 체화된 영성이었다. 꽃동네 거주시설 노숙인들의 영적 체험의 의미와 본질을 종합하는 핵심 주제는 ‘고통의 몸부림 속에 하느님 만나 아름다운 나비가 되어 사랑의 삶 살아가기’로 상정되었다.BR 이상의 결과를 바탕으로 본 연구는 아직 국내에서 알려지지 않았던 꽃동네 노숙인 시설에서 거주하는 생활자들이 어떻게 자신들의 고통을 통해 하느님을 만나고 꽃동네 공동체 안에서 그 사랑을 실천할 수 있게 하는지를 보여줌으로써 사회복지 현장에서의 개입과 전략에 대한 통찰력을 제공하였다.

Lonely, harassed and abandoned in society: the lived experiences of Iranian homeless youth

IntroductionHomelessness is increasing among young adults in large cities. According to the United Nations, there are more than one billion absolute or relative homeless people in the world. This study was conducted to explain the lived experiences of homeless youth in southeastern Iran.Materials and methodsIn this qualitative study, we recruited 13 participants in a big city, southeast Iran, in 2020. The participant was young homeless adults aged 18–29 years who were using homeless shelters provided by the municipality, sleeping in parks or on streets. Data were collected through in-depth and semi-structured interviews and three focus group discussions. Data were analyzed by conventional qualitative content analysis.ResultsThe main category of “lonely, annoyed, and abandoned in society” and three subcategories of avoidance of/by society, comprehensive harassment, and lack of comprehensive support were extracted. The experiences of young homeless adults showed that they escaped from the community due to addiction, feeling like a burden to others, and social isolation, and not only have they been left without support in society, but they have also suffered from all kinds of physical and psychological harassments.ConclusionThe lived experiences of homeless people show that in addition to appropriate facilities and living conditions, they require respect, reduced social stigma, discrimination, and favorable conditions for a return to life. Therefore, authorities should identify and settle their problems and needs.

Health and access to healthcare in homeless people: Protocol for a mixed-methods study.

Background:Homelessness is a more complex problem than the simple lack of a place to live. Homeless people (HP) often suffer from poor health and premature death due to their limited access healthcare, and are also deprived of basic human and social rights. The study protocol described here aims to evaluate the complex relationship between homelessness and health, and identify the barriers and facilitators that impact access to healthcare by HP.Methods:This is a mixed-methods study that uses an explanatory sequential design. The first phase will consist of a cross-sectional study of 300 HP. Specific health questionnaires will be used to obtain information on health status, challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, self-reported use of healthcare, diagnoses and pharmacologic treatments, substance abuse (DAST-10), diet quality (IASE), depression (PHQ-9), and human basic needs and social support (SSQ-6). The second phase will be a qualitative study of HP using the “life story” technique with purposive sampling. We will determine the effects of different personal, family, and structural factors on the life and health status of participants. The interviews will be structured and defined using Nussbaum's capability approach.Discussion:It is well-known that HP experience poor health and premature death, but more information is needed about the influence of the different specific social determinants of these outcomes and about the barriers and facilitators that affect the access of HP to healthcare. The results of this mixed methods study will help to develop global health strategies that improve the health and access to healthcare in HP.

A photoelicitation exploration on formally homeless people experience with Universal Credit: System error and 'the government don't care'.

This article explores the impact of Universal Credit (UC) on a group of formerly homeless people who were forcibly made to experience a system of full of errors and government that, in their view, did not care. The experience of a marginalised and vulnerable group with complex needs allows one to consider the impacts of welfare reforms on vulnerable people. The research was conducted with formerly homeless contacted via organisations that support people who experienced homelessness in Brighton, Southeast of the UK. Five people (32 years and older) participated. Qualitative data were obtained in photo-elicitation interviews and were thematically analysed. Findings were that they faced a system of error as well as experiencing a sense the government did not care about their situation. The participants expressed their views on how the UC process made them 'struggle' and caused them to have to 'use food banks', and argued that the staff did not know the policy. The system is singled out as the cause of UC claimants' destitution. For the participants, policymakers' negligence, contempt, and detachment were not hard to understand. The article provides implications for practice and research.

VAGRANCY AND EXPERIENCES OF CRIME: A CASE OF DURBAN CITY CENTRE

Homelessness has been an age-long and global challenge from years back; and up till now, it still exists across the human societies. Homelessness is, most of the time, linked with substance abuse, although this is not always the fact. The same scenario was observed in Durban Central City, where there are many people sleeping on the street in order to sustain a means of livelihood. To explore the experiences of homeless people with regards to crime, a qualitative approach was adopted. Fifteen homeless people were selected purposively. One-on-one open-ended semi-structured interviews were used to illicit their views. The findings revealed that people from the street do not have a stable income and they end up stealing for making a life, addiction to substance is another factor that contribute to their involvement in crime.

Wishing the wall back: the struggles of eight “unification losers” in post-socialist Berlin

ABSTRACT Nowhere in Eastern Europe was the transition from socialism to capitalism so quickly accomplished as in East Germany, courtesy of unification with its wealthy western counterpart. To ascertain the impact of such changes on urban homelessness and the lived experiences of homeless people, I conducted original ethnographic research among 28 homeless people in Berlin including seven respondents who lived and grew up in former German Democratic Republic (GDR), East Berlin and, in one case, Poland during the late 1990s. In this paper, I am revisiting their experiences by focusing on four themes including 1) initial attitudes toward German unification, 2) adjusting to capitalism, 3) experiences with public support, and 4) social alienation, disaffiliation, and nostalgia demonstrating that the rapidity of changes and short duration of “post-socialism” outpaced the emotional, affective capabilities of most former East German respondents trying to adapt to the new, post-industrial, and increasingly “Americanized” circumstances..

SOCIAL EXCLUSION AND MARGINALISATION OF HOMELESS PEOPLE: A CLARION SOCIAL WORK CALL FOR THE SPIRIT OF UBUNTU TO REIGN

Social work is committed to the advancement of human rights and social justice. One strategy for promoting social justice is to inculcate a human rights-based approach to social work practice. Using ubuntu as a theorical framework, this article initially explores social exclusion and the accompanying stigma that homeless people experience; it then examines how social workers could apply the principles of ubuntu to re-inscribe homeless people’s human rights. A qualitative study was undertaken with 14 participants who were purposively selected and also identified through snowball sampling. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and analysed thematically. Principles of credibility, transferability, dependability and conformability were judiciously adhered to in the research process. The findings indicate that homeless people are the most marginalised population of the community and they are exploited in a variety of ways.

Understanding culture, stigma and drug as a lifestyle in the life of people living in the streets.

This research aimed to analyse how homeless people experience drug use and the intertwining between it and their cultural environment and life style. An etnographic study has been conducted which identified the macrosocial structures through the National Movement of the Homeless (Movimento Nacional da População de Rua) monitoring and the microsocial ones by means of its interlocutors' individual trajectories. Data were collected upon participant observation, registered in a research field journal and in semi-structured interviews. The analysis was carried out by data generation synthesis over the whole working process. Results reveal a street culture in which drug builds a collective life style that sets relationships and identities which withstand stigmas. Life stories unveil social suffering and exclusion besides non-adaptation to society conventional and formal aspects. Therefore, homeless people have their own social organisation that helps them to endure the difficulties in being accepted by society as well as the inadequacy of the social services that should assist them. Drug is part of this culture as a way of living and it needs to be understood and worked with by health professionals through a conscious and open approach.

End-of-life care for homeless people in shelter-based nursing care settings: A retrospective record study

Background: Homeless people experience multiple health problems and early mortality. In the Netherlands, they can get shelter-based end-of-life care, but shelters are predominantly focused on temporary accommodation and recovery. Aim: To examine the characteristics of homeless people who reside at the end-of-life in shelter-based nursing care settings and the challenges in the end-of-life care provided to them. Design: A retrospective record study using both quantitative and qualitative analysis methods. Setting/participants: Two Dutch shelter-based nursing care settings. We included 61 homeless patients who died between 2009 and 2016. Results: Most patients had somatic (98%), psychiatric (84%) and addiction problems (90%). For 75% of the patients, the end of life was recognised and documented; this occurred 0–1253 days before death. For 26%, a palliative care team was consulted in the year before death. In the three months before death, 45% had at least three transitions, mainly to hospitals. Sixty-five percent of the patients died in the shelter, 27% in a hospital and 3% in a hospice. A quarter of all patients were known to have died alone. Documented care difficulties concerned continuity of care, social and environmental safety, patient–professional communication and medical-pharmacological alleviation of suffering. Conclusions: End-of-life care for homeless persons residing in shelter-based nursing care settings is characterised and challenged by comorbidities, uncertain prognoses, complicated social circumstances and many transitions to other settings. Multilevel end-of-life care improvements, including increased interdisciplinary collaboration, are needed to reduce transitions and suffering of this vulnerable population at the end of life.

THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE CONCEPT OF HOME IN THE EXPERIENCES OF HOMELESS PEOPLE

This paper analyses the construction of the concept of home on the basis of subjective experiences of homeless people. Home as a social construct is revealed by analysing experiences of 5 homeless people. Based on the subjective experiences of homeless people, a qualitative research revealed that safe and private home is one of the main needs of people experiencing homelessness. The construction of home is based on past events and the experience of the reality of the past: the childhood home and created constructs of home, safety and independence as well as certain feelings and emotions. The participants of the research are people experiencing homelessness.

Women’s Experiences of Homelessness: A Longitudinal Study

Drawing on the results of a qualitative longitudinal analysis of the experiences of homeless people using an employment related programme in the UK, this article explores the experiences of homeless women. Research focused on women’s trajectories through homelessness remains unusual and this comparatively large study provided an opportunity to look at a group of homeless women over time. The results from 136 in-depth interviews with forty-seven homeless women are reported. The interviews explored their lives prior to becoming homeless, their routes into homelessness and their trajectories through and out of homelessness. The article does not compare experiences across gender, focusing solely on women, because the existing evidence base focuses largely on the experiences of lone homeless men. The goals of the article are twofold, first to add to the existing evidence on women’s experiences of homelessness and second to add to emergent debates on whether gender is associated with differentiated trajectories through homelessness.

Rethinking Homelessness. Residence and the Sense of Home in the Experience of Homeless People

ABSTRACT The objective of this article is to increase the state of knowledge on issues of residence and the sense of home by referring to the statements of homeless people and visual materials documenting the ways of physical and mental construction of the spaces they occupy. I attempt to understand the idea of having a place to live and a home by seeking the opinions of homeless people and the residential practices that characterize them, as the dynamics and forms of these lead to a rethink of what it means to live somewhere as well as to be homeless. On the basis of my own research, conducted in 2013–2016, I point to three factors that I identify as influencing the ways of residence and sense of home: external to the person, mediated by the person, and internal.

Se virando no sistema da rua: moradores de rua, conceitos e práticas

Este artigo busca refletir sobre a articulação entre conhecimento e prática na experiência de vida de pessoas em situação de rua. Para isso, trabalho com as narrativas individuais de Roberto, morador de rua da cidade de Fortaleza, Ceará, e interlocutor de pesquisa de campo realizada entre dezembro de 2015 e outubro de 2016. A partir das categorias nativas de sistema da rua e de se virar, presentes em suas explicações sobre seu modo de habitar a rua, busco discutir como esses conceitos permitem compreender ações, movimentos e valores mobilizados em situações cotidianas da vida na rua, tomando como base etnográfica situações experienciadas por Roberto envolvendo questões de violência, mobilidade e modos de sustento na rua.

Anti-oppressive social work as a tool to reduce barriers to access health care services for homeless people

Based on research findings on the experience of homeless people living in shelters with the use of health care services, this article shows how oppression can negatively affect the access of the homeless to health care. The acquired data shows that oppression associated with the status of a shelter user creates barriers to health care access – and not only in terms of financial barriers. In their narratives, the communication partners verbalized the oppression by doctors, other health care staff and patients. The aim of this paper is, on the basis of partial data from research, to discuss the possibilities of using anti-oppressive social work as a way to reduce the barriers to access to health care services in a given target group. The output of our article consists of proposed implications for social work practice.

Health status of the homeless in Dublin: does the mobile health clinic improve access to primary healthcare for its users?

Homeless people experience substantially higher rates of illness and significant barriers to accessing health services. The mobile health clinic (MHC), staffed by trainee general practitioners, targets and provides homeless people in Dublin with free and easy access to primary healthcare services. To explore and determine the specific health reasons for attending the mobile health unit and to investigate whether the MHC improves access to primary healthcare for homeless people. Interviewer-administered questionnaire addressed demographic characteristics, physical and mental health status. Forty-two participants were recruited in this study. The majority were male (90%), single (74%), Irish (81%) and in the 25-44 age group (71%). Risky health behaviour was common: tobacco use (93%; 39/42), illicit drug use (60%; 25/42) and alcohol use (45%; 19/42). Most participants described their health status as fair (48%) or good (31%). There were high rates of physical and mental health conditions. Hepatitis C (29%; 12/42) and depression (43%; 18/42) were prevalent. Dental disease was present in 79%. Compared with MHC, most health conditions were diagnosed and treated at other healthcare facility (OHF) [134 vs 27]. Report of physical health symptoms, such as coughs (61%) and migraine headache (46%), was also high, an average of five per person/year. While the findings of this study are limited by the small sample size, they nevertheless indicate that the MHC promotes access to primary care service. Results also highlight the need to expand the healthcare approaches on the MHC to adequately meet the health needs of its target population.