Tentative Title: Being a Homeless Women in today's Society
I decided to do my project on being a homeless woman in today's society. Is the increase of homeless woman more of an individual related problem or more of a societal issue. I chose this topic because I would like to know if there are enough resources put into place to transition women back into society as a productive member. This topic interests me because I believe in humanity. I believe everyone has a story and I believe in second chances. I also think theres an enormous amount of stereotyping that comes with seeing homeless women homeless. Homeless women are subjected to violence, powerlessness, victimization along with many other obstacles and threats that come from living on the street. So why are there so many? With my research I would like to dig deeper into the many reasons we continue to see more and more homeless woman in today's society. Is it because there are not enough resources available for homeless women? I am hoping to shed light on the many obstacles and challenges oppressed women face being on the street along with transitioning back into society.
Problems to be investigated:
The main problems I'd like to investigate are the reasons women become homeless, the reasons women stay homeless, and what type of resources are put into place, to help transition women back into a working class society. Is government assistance generated more towards men than women?
Key issues I wish to cover:
The key issues I wish to cover in my research are the many causes women become homeless. There are a lot of immediate risks including substance abuse issues, psychological problems, physical disabilities, and or domestic abuse. I would like to learn which one of these reasons are more prominent than the other. The stereotypical and gender related issues homeless women face in today's society is a problem that I would like to look more into. Homeless women tend to face unique challenges and outcomes that require specific types of care and support, by investigating these key issues, I'm hoping to learn more about the services and programs that are put into place to help women get off the street, and live a more meaningful and productive life.
Methods of research:
The methods I plan on using for my research are journal articles found in the American Psychology database, National Criminal Justice Library, Wiley Online Library, The Northeastern University Press, Sage Journals, and Google Books.
Huey Laura, Berndt Eric. "'You've Gotta Learn how to Play the Game': Homeless Women's Use of Gender Performance as a Tool for Preventing Victimization." The Sociological Review Vol. 56, (2008): Issue 2
Barak Gregg. "Gimme Shelter: A Social History of Homelessness in Contemporary America." by National Criminal Justice Reference Service, Praeger Publishers, (1992 ), pp. 212 ISBN- 0-275-94401-8
Milburn, N., D'Ercole, A. "Homeless women: Moving toward a comprehensive model." American Psychologist, 46(11), pp. 1161–1169.
Ph. D. Browne, Angela. "Family Violence And Homelessness: The Relevance of Trauma Histories in the Lives of Women." American Journal of Orthopsychiatry Vol. 63, Issue 3. (July.,1993), by American Psychological Association (1993) pp.370-384
Jasinski L. Jana, Jennifer K. Wesley, James D. Wright and Elizabeth E. Mustaine. "Hard Lives, Mean Streets: Violence in the Lives of Homeless Women." Oxford Academic Social Forces, Vol. 90, Issue 1. by Northeastern University Press. (2011) pp. 324-326
Institute of Medicine, Committee on Health Care for Homeless People. " Homelessness, Health, and Human Needs." Homeless, Health and Human Needs, National Academies Press (January., 1988) pp. 242 ISBN- 9780309038324,0309038324
Goodman Lisa, Katya Fels, Lisa Goodman. "No Safe Place: Sexual Assault In the Lives of Homeless Women." by The National Online Research Center on Violence Against Women, VAWnet, a Project of the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence/Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence, (2006) pp. 1-12
Lewis H. Joy DO , Ronald M. Anderson PhD, Lillian Gelberg MD. "Healthcare for Homeless Women." Unmet needs and Barriers to Care, Vol. 18, (2003) Issue 11, Journal of General Internal Medicine (November 2003) pp. 921-928
Metraux Stephen, Dennis P. Cullahan. " Family Dynamics, Housing, and Reccuring Homelessness Among women in New York City." Journal of Family Issues, Vol. 20, Issue 3, (1999) Sage Journals (May 1999) pp. 371-396
Buckner C. John PhD, Ellen L. Bassuk MD, Bonnie T. Zima MD. " Mental Health Issues Affecting Homeless Women: Implications for an Intervention." American Journal of Orthopsychiatry Vol 63, Issue 3. July., 1993), by American Psychological Association (1993) pp. 385-399
Rowe Stacey, Jennifer Wolch. "Social Networks in Time and Space: Homeless Women In Skid Row, Los Angeles." Annals of The Association of Geographers. Taylor & Francis Online, (2010) pp. 184-204
Solarz Andrea, G. Anne Bogat. " When Social Support Fails: The Homeless." Journal of Community Psychology, Vol. 18, Issue 1. Wiley Periodicals Inc. pp. 79-96
Field Research:
I plan on doing surveys, questionnaires, and possibly some recorded interviews in the community and through social media as part of my field research. My groups theme is Cultural Oppression towards Women.
Group Theme Questions:
Will gender equality ever be obtained?
Why is gender mainstreaming important for oppressedW women?
How does culture affect gender inequality in women?
How are women oppressed in the 21st century?
What are the negative impacts of gender inequality?
What are the indicators of gender inequality for women?
Project 1 Questions:
How many women have been homeless at some point in their lives?
What were the key factors that caused this? (ex. substance abuse, psychological problems, physical disabilities, and/or domestic violence?)
Are there any services that have helped you transition back into society? (what, how and why)
What services do you think could be added?
How do you think WE as a community can help?
Annotated Bibliography Portion:
Ph. D. Browne, Angela. "Family Violence And Homelessness: The Relevance of Trauma Histories in the Lives of Women." American Journal of Orthopsychiatry Vol. 63, Issue 3. (July.,1993), by American Psychological Association (1993) pp.370-384
Summary: The article " Family Violence And Homelessness: The Relevance of Trauma Histories in the lives of Women" Browne's focal point is the widespread presence of family violence and sexual assault in the lives of homeless women. Browne suggests that " characteristics noted in these women at the time they are identified as homeless may be due in part to the long-term effects of past traumas" (371). It is mentioned that only since 1975 has the prevalence of systematic violence been explored, shedding more light on the effect physical and sexual trauma has on women. The information in this article coincides with one of my key topics for my research, figuring out which factors play a part in women becoming homeless. This article proved by all the research done that most homeless woman have experienced some sort of physical or sexual trauma in their lives.
Access: Overall this article was extremely useful because it supplied me with data involving one of my research key topics. The information that was provided was solidified with surveys, field research, and studies done on homeless women. A lot of data was collected to get these numbers. I was able to locate this article in the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, It has been peer reviewed and vetted. Another reason I know it's a credible source is because at the end of the article Browne listed numerous WorksCited so I can see all the different places she gained her information. This article just provided facts.
Reflect: Though, I believe this article is filled with a lot of information that coincides with my topic, I'm a little hesitant with all the data collected being over twenty years old. After reading this article I am aware of the severity trauma plays in women and how it effects their livelihood. This particular source lets me know, I'm right where I need to be with my research.
Institute of Medicine, Committee on Health Care for Homeless People. " Homelessness, Health, and Human Needs." Homeless, Health and Human Needs, National Academies Press (January., 1988) pp. 242 ISBN- 9780309038324,0309038324
Summary: I enjoyed reading this article because it was initiated by Congress asking the Institute of Medicine to find out whether existing health care programs were ignoring the homeless or delivering care to them inefficiently. This article examines the relationships between homelessness and Health. It is stated "the entitlement problem for the homeless is not that they do not participate in programs for which they are eligible, but that in many states they are not eligible for programs of assistance regardless of their rather obvious needs" (Wright and Weber, 1987). I believe this article allows us to see how much of a part health care officials play in not advocating for people who actually need health care.
Assess: This article is exactly what I need for my research. It discusses in great detail the extent health care plays in advocating for people on the streets. It provides me with graphs and diagrams of research the Institute of Medicine gathered while being out in the field. It goes into great detail Legislative efforts to aid the homeless. It discuss the problem and works towards finding a solution to help in aiding people who are on the streets. I know this is a credible scholarly source because it's published by the National Academies Press along with Congress initiating the research.
Reflect: I will most certainly use this as a source for my project. It gave me a factual knowledge base of information that directly has to do with my topic. I can use the graphs and diagrams to further help my research.
Goodman Lisa, Katya Fels, Lisa Goodman. "No Safe Place: Sexual Assault In the Lives of Homeless Women." by The National Online Research Center on Violence Against Women, VAWnet, a Project of the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence/Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence, (2006) pp. 1-12
Summary: The article "No Safe Place: Sexual Assault in the Lives of Homeless Woman", focuses on the levels of victimization homeless woman face. It discusses how our social institutions are not working effectively to prevent homelessness. They type of staff members that are hired to work at homeless shelters don't meet the criteria to successfully detect and respond appropriately and sensitively to trauma or sexual violence these women experience. This article identifies how there really is no safe place for a homeless woman, not even in a shelter. It's stated " the systems that impact homeless woman who are sexual assault survivors require new funds, new forms of collaboration such as trauma-informed homeless services, and the combined energies of and resources of funders, policy makers, service providers, and communities" (2). This article shows me, that this is a job that has to start from within, to better assist these women.
Assess: This article is very informative in the sense of shedding light on how under-qualified people who work in shelters are. This is great for my topic because it lets me know, there will never be any change if people don't take 'sexual assault in the lives of homeless women' serious. It starts with the employees that are hired in these shelters. This article gives me a lot of different references throughout. It affirms it's credible because it comes from the National Online Research Center on Violence Against Women.
Reflect: I will more than likely use this as a source for my project because the article is informative on what happens in women shelters today. It gives insight on how shelters cannot just be a place to rest your head. It needs to be a platform for women to receive services that will equip them with practices they can apply in their lives to heal. This is perfect for my topic because it ties into, lack of services offered to homeless women, to help transition them back into society.
Solarz Andrea, G. Anne Bogat. " When Social Support Fails: The Homeless." Journal of Community Psychology, Vol. 18, Issue 1. Wiley Periodicals Inc. pp. 79-96
Summary: In the article "When Social Support Fails: The homeless" it examines the social support networks of 125 residents of temporary shelter for the homeless. It goes into detail creating seven meaningful subgroups "the groups varied along the dimensions of transiency, psychiatric history, criminal victimization, and criminal activity" (79). It shows that most residents clearly had some sources of support mostly from family members. This article helps by identifying how much of an effect social support networks play in homeless individuals. It also identifies that out of these 125 residents most of them had one person in their life that supported them, This article helps solidify the importance of creating a new reform to help tackle such an elicit injustice.
Assess: This article was informative tying into my topic. I enjoyed it a great deal because it got out in the field with people who are homeless. One on one contact interviewing and observing is my favorite kind of research. It opens your eyes up to things you have never thought about; allowing you to connect on a level that is impossible with all other types of research. This article was extremely credible because it participated in field research by interviewing all 125 homeless residents from a temporary shelter asking them numerous questions about their life on the streets. It also is an article coming out of the Journal of Community Psychology.
Reflect: I will use this article for my research because of the type of research that was provided in the article. I was sold on the fact they interviewed 125 homeless people who were staying in shelters. The information that was collected gives me first hand knowledge into what is going on with people who are homeless. This information comes from homeless people and what better source is that.