Friendly and Professional

Exploring the Social Problems of Homelessness Social

Amber Mousel

Instructor: Nilajah Nyasuma Sims

HHS/497

April 17th, 2017

In this report, the global social issue that will be evaluated is homelessness which is a social problem that should be addressed. To achieve this, the report will explore the different perspective of this social issue, the policy response to it by the government by use of the health and human service organizations and the weight it has on different groups in the society. The groups that will be addressed in this discussion are the young people as well as the rough sleepers as evidence to indicate that the young people in the world experience rough sleeping before they secure a temporary accommodation.

There are many definitions of homelessness. It changes from one nation to another or among different institutions within the same country. However, an adequate definition of homelessness is that it is equated to rootlessness or literary sleeping rough outside on the streets. This case it means lacking a permanent residence to live in or rather, having a range of poor housing conditions. Therefore, homelessness people can include those living with their family or friends on a temporary basis, shelter and squatters, bed and breakfast, temporary hostels, and those who sleep rough on the streets as pointed out earlier (Viner, et al., 896). So from the above definition, it is evident that the social construction of the homelessness is not essentially for the small number of people who sleep roughly on the streets, smelling alcohol and looking dirty. It comprises of all the people who do not have permanent decent residences or those without regular dwelling places, and they are not the waiting list orc taking house benefit from the government in temporary accommodations. This number of people possess a social problem that is growing steadily.

The issue of homelessness has a rich history. Homelessness cannot be considered as a contemporary issue. It was founded in the Society of America in the early 1640s. During this time, homelessness was related to the moral problems and obligations and people who were considered homeless, visited town to town to show their worth (Alan, 908). However, today it is more related to a global social problem. The primary cause of homelessness was experienced in the 1820s. During this time, people experienced racial inequalities, industrialization, natural disasters character flaws and medical problems. This resulted in increased migration of people from the rural areas to the urban areas hence leading to homelessness due to job searches and low living standards. Droughts, earthquakes, and fires that were experienced in the 1920s and 1930s resulted in increased poverty, and hence people were unable to build their houses (Alan, 910). According to statistics, the number of households that were considered to be homeless by the local authorities grew by 31 percent between 1997 and 2004. Historically, the issue of homelessness was not a social concern that was well known until 1966 when the media exposed it (Alan, 916). This altered the interest of the government, the public, and the media.

The causes of homelessness vary; however, most people argue that it is due to personal failings and tend to consider that if the economy is healthy, there is no reason to become homeless. However, this is not true. Homelessness is caused by complex interplays between a person and individual circumstances as well as the full range of structural forms that act outside their direct control within a society. One of the different factors that cause homelessness is social exclusion which is a lack of personal qualification because they did not have access to proper education and hence they did not get decent jobs Second, substance abuse and alcoholism. It results in a lack of personal control, social support and increased debts especially rental arrears and mortgage. Third, mental health problems as well as getting involved in criminal activities can result in homelessness. Fourth, unresolved family disputes can lead to family breakdown causing homelessness because of divorce and separation. In his case, a significant number of children, men, and women are affected. Moreover, the people who come from the institutional backgrounds like the armed forces and the care are more likely to be affected. Also, the ex-offenders whose jail term comes to an end may lose their families and friends hence resulting to homelessness. Most such people originate from the ethnic minorities. The structural sources of homelessness are mostly economic and social in nature and mostly outside the control of the individuals or families concerned. They include lack of affordable housings, unemployment, poverty and affordable housing.

Many organizations together with the governments of different nations are working hard to provide to provide support and facilities to the homeless people. Also, many volunteers are working to boost the lives of the homeless people through the provision of shelter, food, clothing and healthcare facilities. Moreover, many programs have been planned by the governments as well as other non-governmental institutions with the aim of supporting and facilitating the homeless people. Some of the most common programs that have been effective are the housing fund and re-housing, the pedestrian villages and the transition housing support (Robertson, 251). These programs aim at the homeless people in general; the programs are targeted to specific subpopulations which are set by the nature of their health issues, their specific locations, like suburban or rural areas, or the demographic characteristics that require specializes approaches (Robertson, 251). However, even when such programs are provided to offer specialized services to the homeless people, the coordination of the government and other service providers is essential. The objective should be to enable the homeless people to be able to access a broad range of housing as well as other services that already exist hence resolving this issue of homelessness.

References:

Viner, Russell M., and Brent Taylor. "Adult health and social outcomes of children who have been in public care: a population-based study." Pediatrics 115.4 (2005): 894-899.

Bloom, Alan. "Toward a History of Homelessness." Journal of Urban History 31.6 (2005): 907-917.

Robertson, Marjorie J., and Milton Greenblatt, eds. Homelessness: A national perspective. Springer Science & Business Media, 2013.