Fisher Benjamin W, Mayberry Lindsay, Shinn Marybeth, Khadduri Jill
Vanderbilt University.
Abt Associates.
Hous Policy Debate. 2014 Jan 1;24(2):364-386. doi: 10.1080/10511482.2013.852603.
Because homelessness assistance programs are designed to help families, it is important for policymakers and practitioners to understand how families experiencing homelessness make housing decisions, particularly when they decide not to use available services. This study explores those decisions using in-depth qualitative interviews with 80 families recruited in shelters across four sites approximately six months after they were assigned to one of four conditions (permanent housing subsidies, project-based transitional housing, community-based rapid re-housing, and usual care). Familiar neighborhoods near children's schools, transportation, family and friends, and stability were important to families across conditions. Program restrictions on eligibility constrained family choices. Subsidized housing was the most desired intervention and families leased up at higher rates than in other studies of poor families. Respondents were least comfortable in and most likely to leave transitional housing. Uncertainty associated with community-based rapid re-housing generated considerable anxiety. Across interventions, many families had to make unhappy compromises, often leading to further moves. Policy recommendations are offered.
由于无家可归者援助项目旨在帮助家庭，政策制定者和从业者了解经历无家可归的家庭如何做出住房决策非常重要，尤其是当他们决定不使用现有服务时。本研究通过对80个家庭进行深入的定性访谈来探讨这些决策，这些家庭是在被分配到四种条件（永久性住房补贴、基于项目的过渡性住房、基于社区的快速重新安置和常规护理）之一约六个月后，从四个地点的收容所招募的。靠近孩子学校、交通便利、有家人和朋友以及稳定的熟悉社区对所有条件下的家庭都很重要。项目对资格的限制制约了家庭的选择。补贴住房是最受欢迎的干预措施，与其他针对贫困家庭的研究相比，家庭租房率更高。受访者在过渡性住房中最不自在，也最有可能离开。与基于社区的快速重新安置相关的不确定性引发了相当大的焦虑。在所有干预措施中，许多家庭不得不做出不愉快的妥协，这往往导致进一步搬家。文中还提出了政策建议。
