FAD book outline for exam 4 Chapter 15 Homeless Families in the early 1980 s the homeless population in the United States increasingly included single women and families with children and during the 1990 s families headed by single women were the fastest growing segment of the homeless population the majority of homeless families are headed by women What is Homelessness an individual who lacks a fixed regular and adequate nighttime residence who has a primary nighttime residence that is either a supervised public or private shelter designed to provide temporary living accomidations an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized or a public or private place not designed for or ordinarly used as a regular sleeping accomidation for human beings How Many Homeless People Are There difficult to establish complicated by inconsistent definitions of homelessness limited to counting those on the streets or in shelters miss the more transient homeless population various methods of counting have flaws point in time estimates may focus on counting all homeless people who can be located at a specific point in time or using more sophisticated probability sampling methods most cases of homelessness are temporary a more accurate measure of homelessness over time as well as the proportion of families who experience homelessness over time as well are the proportion of the US population that has ever experienced homelessness studies on any given day at least 800 000 people were homeless in the US including about 200 000 children in homeless families homeless with their families during a typical year between 900 000 and 1 4 million children were 84 of homeless families were headed by women there is much less information available about the extent of rural homelessness percentage of homeless families in rural areas ranged from 7 to 14 of the total homeless population Pathways to Homelessness participants of homelessness economic events such as eviction inability to pay rent or job loss relationship events including women leaving abusive situations and disagreements with friends or relatives with whom they were living unsafe living conditions such as a house fire drug use or sales condemned structures or lack of heat or electricity main reason women who were homeless with children left their place of residence couldn t pay rent abusive or violence in the household landlord made client leave problem with residence or area where residence is located poverty was the most common individual or social cause for family homelessness followed by domestic violence unemployment and family disputes lack of affordable housing and low paying jobs were the most common structural causes pathways vary according to their living situation prior to seeking shelter slow slide from primary tenancy to homelessness their housing grew more marginal over time rapid descent into homelessness after losing their own residence because of an eviction rent related problems or building problems never had a stable residence of their own doubling up in crowded apartments with relatives or friends was a permanent way of life overriding theme of homelessness poverty and women s inability to access adequate housing when current living situations are threatened whether by personal interpersonal or economic crisis Who are Homeless Families typical sheltered homeless family has a mother and two or three children african American families tend to be overrepresented in the homeless population more than half of sheltered homeless family members 55 were African only 26 of persons in all poor families in the US were African Americans white non hispanics and Hispanics tend to be underrepresented in the population of homeless families Characteristics of Homeless Mothers 65 of mothers who were homeless with their minor children were between 22 and 34 American years old 12 were 21 and under 44 black non hispanic 34 white non hispanic 16 Hispanic 46 of mothers were never married 39 divorced or separated homeless mothers tend to have limited education more than half of homeless families 54 had been staying with family or friends or had been living in a housing unit they owned or rented before they entered a shelter the median length of stay in homeless facilities was longer for families 30 nights than many homeless mothers have highly inconsistent work histories which is reflected in for individuals 14 nights their low income levels mental illness and substance abuse do not appear to be present among homeless mothers to the same extent as among single homeless men and women they are at greater risk for these problems than the general population 40 of homeless mothers reported they had experienced alcohol problems in their lifetimes 46 had experienced drug problems 54 had mental health problems depression among both low income housed and homeless mothers may be a result of their experiences of long term poverty and that both poverty and homelessness are key factors in causing depressive symptoms rather than depression causing homelessness many homeless women have experienced extremely traumatic childhood events including sexual and physical abuse and being in foster care homeless mothers frequently also experience abusive adult relationships and may be fleeing domestic violence women who are poor are unlikely to escape some form of physical violation strengths of homeless mothers surprisingly good overall psychosocial status coping strategies doing something to confront their problems directly getting social support having patience and enduring hardships thinking positively having religious beliefs exhibiting a willingness to ask for and accept help finding purpose in helping others Homeless Children and the Impact of Homelessness children who are homeless with one or more partents are distinguished from homeless youth who are considered unaccompanied minors 53 of children under 18 living with homeless parents are male 75 are under age 12 many shelters do not allow teenage males to stay male children may have to stay on their own in adult shelters stay with family or it is unclear how the conditions of homelessness and poverty differentially affect friends or become wards of the state children Early Research on homeless children poorer living conditions poorer health including chronic health conditions malnutrition elevated lead levels iron deficiencies more mental health problems more developmental