Homelessness in the United States: Volume I: State Surveys

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Chapters in this work describe and analyze homelessness in 15 states, from all geographic regions of the US. The diversity of survey locations reveals a variety of forces contributing to homelessness. There are frequent efforts to situate the problem within the sociopolitical context of the 1980s. An occasional chapter contains rich theoretical commentary. . . . the scope of the findings is compelling and the contradiction of stereotypes is effective. Choice This volume reads and holds together well even though each of the 14 chapters was written by a different individual or group, covers a different section of the country, uses different types of data sources and analytical methods, and evidences differing perspectives. An excellent foreword and introduction (Bruce Wiegand, Howard M. Bahr) put everything in context . . . Library Journal The essays in this volume attempt to answer some of the basic questions involved in the study of homelessness. They address such issues as the nature and extent of homelessness in the United States, the socioeconomic and demographic features of the homeless population, and how homelessness is conceptualized. Other examined matters include family background, duration of homelessness, shelter and social needs, socioeconomic causes, and the demands of the homeless issue on national policy. This work provides a unique sociological and demographic perspective on the problems of homelessness. Its emphasis on local and state-level studies will make it invaluable for civic groups and policy makers. It will also interest scholars in the fields of housing, urban sociology, and social problems.

Reviews

"This book represents a noteworthy advance over most of the existing literature on homelessness. In the area of inquiry marked by a multitude of local studies and innumerable bureaucractic reports, a field of study in which systematic attention to the regional or national context is notably lacking, Professor Momeni aims to correlate, to integrate, via state-by-state assessment of contemporary homelessness."-Howard M. Bahr
"Attention is focused here on the statewide distribution, variations, trends, and characteristic of homelessness in America--a major and growing socioeconomic and health problem. Data presented in the text show that on the average only about 25%-30% of the homeless actually suffer any varying degrees of mental illness (in some instances a consequence of homelessness itself). The remaining 75;pc are perfectly normal, average people, including young and innocent children, the elderly, family members, and victims of eviction and family violence, who have suddenly and without warning fallen into the lowest social stratum. Also documented here is the fact that a considerable segment of the population is "homeless-vulnerable," not at all fitting the mentally ill stereotype. In any event, irrespective of the cause--mental illness or other--the homeless should be perceived from a sociological perspective. Such a perspective views them as a social group worthy of all rights and privileges of membership in the society, and entitled to respectable treatment by the society at large."-Sage Urban Studies Abstracts
Attention is focused here on the statewide distribution, variations, trends, and characteristic of homelessness in America--a major and growing socioeconomic and health problem. Data presented in the text show that on the average only about 25%-30% of the homeless actually suffer any varying degrees of mental illness (in some instances a consequence of homelessness itself). The remaining 75; pc are perfectly normal, average people, including young and innocent children, the elderly, family members, and victims of eviction and family violence, who have suddenly and without warning fallen into the lowest social stratum. Also documented here is the fact that a considerable segment of the population is "homeless-vulnerable," not at all fitting the mentally ill stereotype. In any event, irrespective of the cause--mental illness or other--the homeless should be perceived from a sociological perspective. Such a perspective views them as a social group worthy of all rights and privileges of membership in the society, and entitled to respectable treatment by the society at large.-Sage Urban Studies Abstracts
Chapters in this work describe and analyze homelessness in 15 states, drawn from all geographic regions of the US. The diversity of survey locations reveals a variety of forces contributing to homelessness. There are frequent efforts to situate the problem within the sociopolitical context of the 1980s. An occasional chapter contains rich theoretical commentary. Every entry offers demographic description; many chapters offer policy prescriptions. Because each chapter is written by different analysts, the obligatory critiques of ambiguous definitions and flawed methodologies tend to recur. These are instructive lessons for homelessness research, but their repetition is tedious. Indeed, the succession of chapters in nearly identical format, albeit with changing data and discussion, makes the reading dry compared, for example, to Jonathan Kozel's Rachel and Her Children (1988). However, the scope of the findings is compelling, and the contradiction of stereotypes is effective. Although reliance on chapter subheadings seriously weakens the index, libraries serving undergraduate students and above should consider this a solid contribution to social science holdings.-Choice
The homeless population of the United States is becoming increasingly visible not only in terms of the media, but in the realm of everyday life. This is the first of two books which focus on the homeless population, and is a compilation of work by leading researchers who study this special population. This volume quantifies homelessness in thirteen states and one region in the U.S. The authors present statistics describing demographics of the homeless, allowing the editor to conclude that this population is misunderstood by the majority of Americans. He explains that the goal of this book, and the subsequent volume, are to increase awareness of the value of the homeless, especially in the eyes of policymakers.-Journal of Planning Literature
This volume (1 of 2 projected) reads and holds together well even though each of the 14 chapters was written by a different individual or group, covers a different section of the country, uses different types of data sources and analytical methods, and evidences differing perspectives. All essays focus on definition by quality and quantity of the contemporary homeless in the United States; all offer suggested palliatives. An excellent foreword and introduction (Bruce Weigand, Howard M. Bahr) put everything in context: the overriding necessity for the continued use of a careful social science methodology to gain understanding of the causes and magnitude of this complex national and local, social and individual, political and economic problem. Highly recommended to academics, professionals, and interested laypersons.-Library Journal
"The homeless population of the United States is becoming increasingly visible not only in terms of the media, but in the realm of everyday life. This is the first of two books which focus on the homeless population, and is a compilation of work by leading researchers who study this special population. This volume quantifies homelessness in thirteen states and one region in the U.S. The authors present statistics describing demographics of the homeless, allowing the editor to conclude that this population is misunderstood by the majority of Americans. He explains that the goal of this book, and the subsequent volume, are to increase awareness of the value of the homeless, especially in the eyes of policymakers."-Journal of Planning Literature
"This volume (1 of 2 projected) reads and holds together well even though each of the 14 chapters was written by a different individual or group, covers a different section of the country, uses different types of data sources and analytical methods, and evidences differing perspectives. All essays focus on definition by quality and quantity of the contemporary homeless in the United States; all offer suggested palliatives. An excellent foreword and introduction (Bruce Weigand, Howard M. Bahr) put everything in context: the overriding necessity for the continued use of a careful social science methodology to gain understanding of the causes and magnitude of this complex national and local, social and individual, political and economic problem. Highly recommended to academics, professionals, and interested laypersons."-Library Journal
"Chapters in this work describe and analyze homelessness in 15 states, drawn from all geographic regions of the US. The diversity of survey locations reveals a variety of forces contributing to homelessness. There are frequent efforts to situate the problem within the sociopolitical context of the 1980s. An occasional chapter contains rich theoretical commentary. Every entry offers demographic description; many chapters offer policy prescriptions. Because each chapter is written by different analysts, the obligatory critiques of ambiguous definitions and flawed methodologies tend to recur. These are instructive lessons for homelessness research, but their repetition is tedious. Indeed, the succession of chapters in nearly identical format, albeit with changing data and discussion, makes the reading dry compared, for example, to Jonathan Kozel's Rachel and Her Children (1988). However, the scope of the findings is compelling, and the contradiction of stereotypes is effective. Although reliance on chapter subheadings seriously weakens the index, libraries serving undergraduate students and above should consider this a solid contribution to social science holdings."-Choice

Author Bio

JAMSHID A. MOMENI is Associate Professor of Sociology/Anthropology at Howard University. He is the editor of Race, Ethnicity, and Minority Housing in the United States (1986), and the author of Housing and Racial/Ethnic Minority Status in the United States (1987), Demography of Racial and Ethnic Minorities in the United States (1984) and Demography of the Black Population in the United States (1983), all published by Greenwood Press.