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Social networks, time homeless, and social support: A study of men on Skid Row

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 December 2013

HAROLD D. GREEN ,
JOAN S. TUCKER ,
DANIELA GOLINELLI  and
SUZANNE L. WENZEL
HAROLD D. GREEN
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, 1776 Main St., P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138, USA (e-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected])
JOAN S. TUCKER
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, 1776 Main St., P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138, USA (e-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected])
DANIELA GOLINELLI
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, 1776 Main St., P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138, USA (e-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected])
SUZANNE L. WENZEL
Affiliation:
University of Southern California School of Social Work, University Park Campus, Montgomery Ross Fisher Building, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0411, USA (e-mail: [email protected])
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Abstract

Homeless men are frequently unsheltered and isolated, disconnected from supportive organizations and individuals. However, little research has investigated these men's social networks. We investigate the structure and composition of homeless men's social networks, vis-a-vis short- and long-term homelessness with a sample of men drawn randomly from meal lines on Skid Row in Los Angeles. Men continuously homeless for the past six months display networks composed of riskier members when compared to men intermittently homeless during that time. Men who report chronic, long-term homelessness display greater social network fragmentation when compared to non-chronically homeless men. While intermittent homelessness affects network composition in ways that may be addressable with existing interventions, chronic homelessness fragments networks, which may be more difficult to address with those interventions. These findings have implications for access to social support from network members which, in turn, impacts the resources homeless men require from other sources such as the government or non-governmental organizations.

Keywords

homeless mensocial networkschronic homelessnessintermittent homelessnesssocial support
Type
Research Article
Information
Network Science , Volume 1 , Issue 3 , December 2013 , pp. 305 - 320
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013 

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