Pathways Off the Streets: Homeless People and Their Use of Resources

Author: Bradley R. Entner Wright

Dissertation School: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Pages: 325

Publication Date: June 1995

Availability:
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Access Number: 8894

Abstract:

Previous studies of homelessness have focused primarily upon descriptions of the homeless population and explanations for the onset of homelessness. This dissertation takes a different tack and examines the processes by which homeless people leave the streets for conventional housing.

The conceptual framework for this examination of homeless exiting is based on four propositions derived from rational choice theory: that homeless people are rational actors, that they vary in their possession of resources, that resources predict rates of exiting, and that homeless people vary in their ability and motivation to use their resources for housing.

These propositions are tested with data from the Study of Alameda County Residents (STAR). This three-wave longitudinal study followed 479 initially homeless people over a one-year period. Analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data provides general support for the propositions guiding this dissertation. The respondents often faced numerous housing options, and they chose those that best fit their housing preferences. They varied considerably in their possession of resources. With only a few exceptions, levels of income, housing assistance, and family contact predicted high rates of homeless exiting. Total income positively predicted exiting only for those respondents who did not use drugs; for drug users the relationship between income and exiting was negative.

The findings of this dissertation have various implications. Conceptually, they portray homeless people as strategic and active users of resources. They bring light to some of the dynamics of homelessness. They imply that drug users may have substantially different experiences of homelessness. They suggest that mental illness may have relatively little negative impact upon exiting behavior. Practically, the findings of this dissertation suggest that perhaps the most efficient time to intervene is after individuals have been homeless for several months, when exit rates have plummeted to very low levels. They identify whom among homeless people have the lowest exit rates and thus may need the most assistance. They imply various types of interventions to assist homeless people off the streets via employment, social welfare programs, and social support.

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