Barriers within the Safety Net: A study of family homelessness in Somerville, Massachusetts and the availability, accessibility, and effectiveness of social services
Jichlinski, Amanda
2010
- The purpose of this study was to examine the availability, accessibility, and acceptability of supportive service programs for homeless families in Somerville, MA. Family homelessness in the United States, practically nonexistent before the 1980s, is rapidly growing to be one of the fasted growing problems today. Social conditions including rising poverty, stagnant wages and a steady decline in ... read moreavailable low-income housing have placed hundreds of thousands of families at-risk of homelessness. Families comprise 34 percent of the homeless population, the most rapidly growing demographic. As a result of the present economic constriction, even more families are homeless or at-risk of homelessness. With so many families in need of supportive services, it is important to maximize their utilization. Using methods based on a community-based participatory research model, ten parents of homeless families affiliated with the Somerville Homeless Coalition were interviewed to learn of their experiences finding and utilizing homeless services in Somerville. The interviewees provided insight to the barriers families face when trying to seek aid and the facilitators that help them navigate the homeless system. Additionally, it was also found that a disparity existed where government social services were significantly better known than private nonprofit programs. Study results led to recommendations to improve the supportive service system for homeless families, including increasing communication between nonprofit and government service providers, and providing more information of available supportive programs to communities to make services more accessible and available to at-risk families. Additionally, changes must be made to improve the quality of available services; relations between case workers and clients must be improved and an increase in services, especially low income housing, is sorely needed if the needs of homeless families are to be met.read less
- ID:
- x059ck72b
- Component ID:
- tufts:UA005.031.007.00001
- To Cite:
- TARC Citation Guide EndNote
