To effectively control if not eliminate the challenge of homelessness, favorable economic conditions are required. Indeed, a historical viewpoint reveals spikes in homelessness coincide with economic downturns, hence, it naturally follows that an upturn is necessary for programs to effectively tackle homelessness (Gee, 2017). But, this does not explain recently recorded increases in homeless figures across the United States. Specifically, while the economy has registered an upturn, there has been no commensurate decrease in recorded homelessness statistics. Preliminary observations indicate that improved economic conditions might be contributing to the recent increases in recorded incidents of homelessness (Gee, 2017). Without an effective understanding of the nature of homelessness along with its causes and impacts, recorded incidents of increased homelessness are bound to become common even in improved economic conditions.
To justify homelessness as a social problem, it is essential to focus on the definition of the phenomenon, its impacts, and those affected by them. Fundamentally, the term homelessness describes the condition of lacking a permanent residence. That said, legal definitions vary depending on the country (Mooney, Knox & Schacht, 2014). In the narrow sense, the term home aptly describes the physical structure from which one acquires shelter from the harshness of the elements and offers a sense of security and convenience. But a home could also be a source of identity, heritage, a sense of emotional well-being and belonging. Significantly, the reason homelessness is considered a problem, economic or social, is that it is harmful to the people it afflicts directly and again because it has an impact on society as well (Mooney et.al 2014). Here, the burden goes beyond the cost burden of solutions to homelessness. Academically speaking, the discipline of economics is itself a social science. Generally, the nature of this phenomenon along with that of its impacts are predominantly social, hence, it is reasonable to view homelessness as a social problem as well.
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According to Mago et.al (2013), underlying this complex social problem are several economic and social reasons like poverty, lack of affordable housing, uncertain physical and mental health, addictions, and community and family breakdown. However, before tackling the underlying factors, it is essential to undergird this viewpoint of homelessness with at least one sociological theory. Under consideration are conflict and structural functionalism theories. Critically, it is the need to address the relationship between the environment as well as the circumstances in which an individual functions and that individuals’ experience being without a permanent residence that inform this selection.
Karl Max observed that the society is in a constant struggle based on competition for scarce resources. Further, conflict theory suggests that it is power and domination that are the tools for maintaining social order (Mooney et.al 2014). Applying this theory to homelessness, the former posits capitalism as the cause of the latter. Further advancing this notion, conflict theory categorizes society in two classes, namely the proletariat and the bourgeoisie. According to this theory, the latter own almost all the factors of economic production, with labor being the exception and which is provided by the proletariat. Max observes that, on one hand, the bourgeoisie exploit the proletariat to the extent of depriving them of basic human needs. On the other hand, the proletariat mortgage their labor under the impression that they are well catered for and inadvertently depend on the bourgeoisie to look after their needs (Mooney et.al 2014).
Notably, this theory suggests that the bourgeoisie is primarily concerned with the accumulation of wealth which implies that looking after the working class is not as significant a consideration to them as the proletariat believe. This dynamic produces the narrative of conflicting needs as the bourgeoisie seek wealth accumulation and not welfare for the proletariat, which the latter identifies as its primary need (Mooney et.al 2014). Thus, it seems that wealth in a capitalistic society is the outcome of working hard, good education, and determination. Conversely, this impliedly assigns the origin of homelessness to flaws in the person rather than society. Overall, it seems that the tension resulting from the continuous class struggle is responsible for homelessness in America (Mooney et.al 2014).
According to structural functionalism, society is a collection of people and institutions that work in concert and in a harmonious manner towards common objectives. Considering that homelessness impacts the society along with the individual, this theory has relevance in unravelling the complexities of this phenomenon (Mooney et.al 2014). Crudely, homelessness can be interpreted as serving the valuable function of being the emblem of inequality in the context of enhancing societal welfare. Recent sociological viewpoints have investigated social structures and agency as a means of explaining the growth in reported poverty levels. Furthermore, the preponderance of historical anecdotal evidence from previous approaches has led to the suggestion that a systemic underserving of the poor as the cause of homelessness (Mooney et.al 2014). That said, it is only by looking at the scientific evidence can appropriate explanations about homelessness and poverty be revealed. Such evidence might include but is not limited to, the opportunities that people can access. Not only do the theoretical concepts discussed enhance understanding of homelessness, but they also underline the influence of economics and politics (Mooney et.al 2014).
The most obvious cause of homelessness relates to the cost burden of housing and the socioeconomic vulnerability of the affected persons. On the other hand, homelessness has numerous impacts that contact both the individual and society. Of the former, isolation makes people susceptible to substance abuse, increased exposure to mental and physical health problems (Mooney et.al 2014). Furthermore, prolonged exposure to homelessness reduces the likelihood of successful rehabilitation. Because homelessness causes grave healthcare issues, it increases the burden of healthcare cost born by the society. On the other hand, it also inhibits access to treatment and recuperation, which increases the threat of health conditions. So, in addition to increasing costs, it also makes healthcare less effective (Mooney et.al 2014). Similarly, homelessness increases mental health costs due to the mental health and substance abuses. More than any other section of the population, the homeless are bound to violate laws directly targeting them. In so doing, they increase the societal cost burden of incarceration. Another cost element borne by the society is that of strained families and social agencies (Mooney et.al 2014).
Social scientists and policy experts observe homelessness as an intricate social problem undergirded by economic and political factors. Furthermore, they note that due to the difficulty of defining this phenomenon, governments are yet to formulate effective strategies that either manage or eradicate the problem (Mago et.al 2013). Similarly, these experts agree that those conditions that directly contribute to housing like poverty, unemployment, lack of affordable housing, mental health challenges and breakdown of families also need to be addressed in tackling this issue. Critically, they advocate for the use of evidence-based approaches in initiatives and programs tackling homelessness (O’Toole, Pape & Kane, 2013).
Societal solution to the challenge is the provision of affordable housing. To this end, there are two models that have proved effective: permanent supportive housing and rapid re-housing. The former entails the provision of rental assistance and supportive services and targets both individuals and families with a protracted experience of homelessness as well as chronic illness, disabilities, mental health, and substance abuse disorders. The latter has a short-term approach to the provision of both rental assistance and support services as it is designed to help the recently homeless to access housing quickly and maintain such access (National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2018). Furthermore, the Department of Housing and Urban development managed public housing and voucher programs offer affordable housing to low-income individuals. However, a lack of funding has obstructed the efficacy of these programs (National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2018). Critically, these approaches are lacking means of tackling the cause of the housing crisis: changes to government legislation that have limited investment in low-income housing and the provision of rental assistance.
An alternative approach would be to roll back such legislation to ensure that avail funds needed for the federally administered housing programs, government rental assistance and investment in affordable housing. Considering current economic conditions, it is necessary to change the tax regime to fund the implementation of such changes. For instance, residents of Los Angeles voted to increase their tax burden to avails funds for housing the homeless. The Economic Policy Institute observes that the American median hourly wage has not increased in decades and lags current economic realities especially in the context of housing (Gee, 2017). Hence, reviewing the hourly wage could potentially improve access to housing among in the low-income population. Then again, such policy changes could increase the cost of doing business and potentially discourage investments and create a situation that leaves the already vulnerable even more exposed. That said, reviewing the tax regime to avail more funds for homeless programs and initiatives is desirable simply because it has an immediate tangible impact in reducing homelessness.
It is doubtless that homelessness is a social problem. Equally doubtless is the fact that this problem is supported by a confluence of political and economic factors. Even the sociological theories impliedly justified their application on this phenomenon based on economic costs. Arguably, such costs can be objectively quantified and readily applied to theoretical frameworks meant to simplify, for understanding, an intricate and multilayered phenomenon such as vagrancy in America.
References
Gee, A. (2017). America's homeless population rises for the first time since the Great Recession. The Guardian . Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/05/america-homeless-population-2017-official-count-crisis . Retrieved on October 6, 2018.
Mago, V., Morden, K., H., Fritz, C., Wu, T., Namazi, S., Geranmayeh, P., Chattopadhyay, R., & Dabbaghian, V. (2013). Analyzing the impact of social factors on homelessness: a Fuzzy Cognitive Map approach. BioMed Central . doi: 10.1186/1472-6947-13-94 .
Mooney, L. Knox, D., & Schacht, C. (2014). Understanding social problems . Boston: Cengage Learning.
National Alliance to End Homelessness. (2018). Housing. Retrieved from https://endhomelessness.org/homelessness-in-america/what-causes-homelessness/housing/ . Retrieved on October 6, 2018.
O’Toole, T., Pape, L., & Kane, V. (2013). Ending Homelessness—Then What? American Journal of Public Health . doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2013.301730
