Current Events > Charity Perpetuates Homelessness

(+) Yeah! (+)

Homelessness is not the same thing as houselessness, and this is a distinction thats slowly gaining acceptance despite that it is not well known. Even less known is the concept of psychological homelesssness (p. homeless), a condition that is very similar to (and often caused by) PTSD. Most homeless people (houseless and p. homeless alike) suffer from this condition.

The condition has a lot of symptoms, but they can be generalized thusly: one can be in their own house, and in their own bed, and still they may be compelled to say "I want to go home." Because of this, solving the social issue of homelessness is a lot less simple than relying on charity. While the economic aspects of being houseless are things that need to be solved for the individual as well, it does nothing to really deal with what causes the condition. Moreover, it does nothing to prevent recidivism. Without a strong emotional base and solid, comitted support from trustworthy "others", regression is likely.

Charity doesnt help with this. And in a lot of ways it can exacerbate it. If a homeless person has already developed a certain routine of spending, then straight money will simply feed into that routine. The same effect can be observed in other forms of charity like free food, shelter, clothing, etc. Very seldom is a homeless person going to utilize charity as a jumping off point to start recovering from houselessness. Because again, charity does nothing to address the psychological issues that underly the condition. Indeed, one might say that charity makes it okay to be homeless, and that is not an effective means to resolve it.

From the psychological perspective meanwhile, there are other issues with the simple acts of charity. For those that engage in rough sleep, such as literally sleeping in a cardboard box or living out of a vehicle, to suggest that they must leave these "domiciles" is likely to invoke a negative reaction. For these types, the cardboard box is the closest thing to a home, and likely the closest thing theyve had to a home for years. Asking them to leave is similar to asking them to relive the initial shock of becoming houseless.

Touching back on recidivism, it is very easy for someone who is p. homeless to fall off the wagon so to speak. Much like those recovering from drug addiction, the homeless person needs a strong emotional base and as much support as possible to not just reach a point where they they can no longer be houseless, but also to reach the critical point if no longer being homeless. Without this support, and especially without the emotional base, the moment the homeless person experiences hardship, the immediate reaction will likely be a regress to houselessness.

Why this is is naturally due to the psychological condition, but it is an economic one as well. For those that can and do seek out steady jobs (most homeless do), houselessness presents a relatively easy lifestyle. Depending on bills they have, which wont be many, they will almost always have cash on hand. Getting an apartment or even renting a room will take this away. Once again, without proper support, this will not be taken lightly and will be a primary logical reason that they will regress if the opportunity presents itself.

The homeless are best helped by "re-homing" them. Charity is a part of this, but it can only be a small part to make up deficiencies and meet critical needs (Obviously give the starving homeless man a sandwich). Re-Homing is about building the person up and giving them back a sense of home that is lost in the p. homeless. This requires a serious, potentially multi-year committment from those that seek to help, and the ability to foster and maintain a great deal of trust. Without these things, a homeless person is lost. No matter how of your spare change you fork over to them.

(Written by me, a p. homeless person who has been houseless for multiple years and is slowly recovering)
---

Edited. Missed some bits.
---

This better be a crappypasta
---

yeah man, homeless stay as such for the handouts!
---

How did we end up with homeless people on CE?
I don't have any change!
---

gunplagirl posted...

This better be a crappypasta

It is actually a paraphrased version of a research paper i wrote, that is based on actual research, as well as my own personal experience, what with actually suffering from the condition I talk about.
---

CommonJoe posted...

gunplagirl posted...

This better be a crappypasta

It is actually a paraphrased version of a research paper i wrote, that is based on actual research, as well as my own personal experience, what with actually suffering from the condition I talk about.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias
---

monkmith posted...

CommonJoe posted...

gunplagirl posted...

This better be a crappypasta

It is actually a paraphrased version of a research paper i wrote, that is based on actual research, as well as my own personal experience, what with actually suffering from the condition I talk about.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias

Itt: we pretend the fact that i have the condition invalidates independent research on it. I used myself to illustrate what was being described (ie symptoms) more concisely, not to prove anything about homelessness.
---

CommonJoe posted...

monkmith posted...

CommonJoe posted...

gunplagirl posted...

This better be a crappypasta

It is actually a paraphrased version of a research paper i wrote, that is based on actual research, as well as my own personal experience, what with actually suffering from the condition I talk about.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias

Itt: we pretend the fact that i have the condition invalidates independent research on it. I used myself to illustrate what was being described (ie symptoms) more concisely, not to prove anything about homelessness.

without looking at your research and method work all anyone has is your word that you didn't come into the topic with a per-existing bias that you worked towards proving...
---