Homelessness: case study analyses

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Dear Student,
Hi. You are being tasked here to view developmental norms within a family. The issue here however is the selected sample - homeless population. We can explore developmental norms on specific members of the homeless but within the family structure perspective, which is a tad tricky. We will for this particular assignment assume that poverty leads to homeless families and from there explore developmental effects. Good luck with your studies!

Sincerely,
OTA 105878/Xenia Jones
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Homeless Families: Application of Theory

In social work, theories have 3 ways of application - as explanatory paradigms, descriptive/modelling paradigms & structure paradigms. Theories are practiced by social workers in the field as work approaches and methods necessary in doing social work. Social work is all about finding solutions to problems in society. The problems of society are complex and as such they are challenging to study. The challenge is to find the root of the problem in order to find working solutions. In this particular paper, I am going to look into the social issue of homeless families. Poverty is a social problem that is chronic - it is always there, a condition of lack that while does not affect everyone always affects a portion of the populace. Whether in absolute poverty or the total state of destituteness of relative poverty where the state of lack still has some home of relief, poverty in American families can lead to homelessness. Since 2007 at the rise of the recession and to this very day, the number of American homeless, including families has arisen. A 2008 report by Reuters shared that "the Mortgage Bankers Association says nearly 1.5 million homes are in the process of foreclosure" which means that families who live in these homes were in danger of losing a roof over their heads. Most likely a percentage of these had already been rendered homeless due to the fact that the US has yet to fully recover from the ravages of the global economic recession. Andrea Fuller (2009) of the New York Times wrote -

"While the numbers of individual homeless people remained relatively flat, the number of people in families that were homeless rose by 9 percent from Oct. 1, 2007 to Sept. 30, 2008...1.6 million people lived in transitional housing or in a shelter in 2008, slightly more than in the previous year. But families now make up about one-third of that number."

It is sad to think about the kind of hardships and challenges a homeless family face. The reality from their eyes however is far more biting. They have to live in this state of homelessness daily, without employment and without the ability to provide for the needs of all their members. In this state, education and other needs take a backseat as food and shelter becomes the central focus. Without the help and aid of various organizations, advocacies and homeless agencies by private individuals and the government, many will have nowhere to turn to at all. The US national Center on Family Homelessness shares that (2011),

"Every year, hundreds of thousands of American families become homeless, including more than 1.5 million children. These children are hidden from our view, but they are living in shelters, cars, and campgrounds. They are young and scared, and their parents and families are frustrated and desperate.

"Family homelessness is caused by the combined effects of lack of affordable housing, extreme poverty, decreasing government supports, changing demographics of the family, the challenges of raising children alone, domestic violence, and fractured social supports. As the gap between housing costs and income continues to widen and housing foreclosures increase, ...