Being homeless and the use and nonuse of services: a qualitative study

Abstract

Eight homeless people were interviewed about their experiences of health and social services. Three themes emerged: responsibility, identity, and feeling trapped. Although some felt they were responsible for their own situation and avoided help, most turned to formal channels for help, but professionals were often seen as offering unwanted labels and as being rule bound. In contrast, peers were considered more understanding but colluded with their problems. Participants also expressed feeling trapped within the homeless system. Therefore, by locating responsibility for change with others, they were left feeling stigmatized, but by turning to their peers, their situation remained the same. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Social Services Professionals' Views of Barriers to Supporting Homeless Noncustodial Fathers

“…The societal expectations participants believed were placed on HNCFs were consistent with the findings of Barrett‐Rivera et al (), who documented service providers' lack of understanding of the true needs of homeless fathers and unspoken gendered expectations. Homeless individuals tend to refuse help when service providers have rigid expectations (Ogden & Avades, ), but our participants described their attempts to not project those cultural ideologies when working with HNCFs; rather, they wanted to be sympathetic to the plight of the fathers they serve. Indeed, findings from Sznajder‐Murray and Slesnick () suggest that clients respond more positively and remain more engaged with services when social service providers exhibit such empathetic and compassionate behavior.…”

Stories From the Streets: Identity Management Strategies of Low Status Groups

“…This type of preservation is problematic because in these examples, participants preferred to preserve their identities than to ask for help. A similar issue can occur in regards to using social services because the stigma associated with the label makes it more difficult to ask for help, making it more difficult to break the cycle of homelessness (Ogden & Avades, 2011). Boydell and colleagues (2000) stated that "homeless individuals strive to have valued lives and selves" (p. 30).…”

Pathways to homelessness, and attitudes toward night shelter use for homeless men in Denver, Colorado

“…An article by Ogden and Avades (2011) examined the reasons why some homeless adults choose to utilize social services and others do not. They state that in 2003, there were approximately 400,000 homeless roaming the streets of the United Kingdom, and a major problem for the homeless was lack of access to social services.…”

“…Few other studies have examined the interaction of homeless individuals with social services. Therefore, Ogden and Avades (2011) examined this interaction and how this contributed to homeless people's attitudes for and against service use. Ogden and Avades (2011) conducted in-depth interviews with 8 homeless men and women who attended a local community center in Great Britain.…”

“…Their personal history and health issues, the length of time they had been homeless, any assistance they had been given from different sources; and what could be done to help the future homeless. The researchers examined both formal and informal assistance (Ogden and Avades 2011).…”