The Cost of Seeking Shelter: How Inaccessibility Leads to Women's Underutilization of Emergency Shelter

Emergency shelter is considered the "point of entry" into the social service system for homeless individuals. Despite the benefits of using emergency shelter, many homeless individuals remain unsheltered. The author argues that it is not enough for services to be available to the homeless....

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of poverty Vol. 18; no. 3; pp. 254 - 274
Main Author Perez, Jessica Lauren
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Routledge 03.07.2014
Subjects
accessibility
Constraints
Emergencies
Females
homeless women
Homelessness
Intervention
qualitative
Qualitative Methods
Services
shelter utilization
Shelters
Social Services
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Summary:Emergency shelter is considered the "point of entry" into the social service system for homeless individuals. Despite the benefits of using emergency shelter, many homeless individuals remain unsheltered. The author argues that it is not enough for services to be available to the homeless. These services must also be accessible so that homeless individuals obtain the benefits they provide. Qualitative interviews with homeless women (N = 39) revealed that the inaccessibility of emergency shelter, despite the availability of it, discouraged women from seeking and attaining shelter. Interventions that address barriers to accessing services will encourage more homeless women to seek and use shelter.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
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ISSN:1087-5549
1540-7608
DOI:10.1080/10875549.2014.923966