Selected Bibliography of Homelessness Resources
Scope note: This bibliography highlights some of the resources
available in the Social Work Library, on campus, and on the web which deal
with homelessness, including government policy and statistical information,
in America. This list is not comprehensive. Contact library
staff at social.work.library@umich.edu for
assistance in locating additional resources.
Homelessness is a broad and complex topic which has permeated social work
literature. Resources focus on various population groups especially at risk
for homelessness, such as single men, women with children, abused women,
and the mentally ill. In fact, homelessness can and does touch anyone living
on the very edge between poverty and destitution. Lipton & Sabatani (1984)
state:
The term "homeless" is actually a catch word, a misnomer
that focuses our attention on only one aspect of the individual's plight:
his lack of residence or housing. In reality, the homeless often have no
job, no function, no role within the community; they generally have few if
any social supports. They are jobless, penniless, functionless, and supportless
as well as homeless. (p.156)
Lipton, F.R. & Sabatoni, A. (1984). Constructing support systems
for homeless chronic patients. In H.R. Lamb (Ed.), The homeless mentally
ill (pp. 153-172). Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Association.
RA 790.6 .H661 1984
Searching for Items in Mirlyn
Items owned by the Social Work Library which deal with homelessness can be
found by searching the Mirlyn catalog
for "Subject begins with . . " the term homelessness. Because
resources on homelessness may be found under a variety of related subject headings,
we provide some suggested headings below, which can be used for searching the
catalog. In addition, keyword terms might be found in the Thesaurus of Sociological
Indexing Terms (HM 17 .T5311 1996 Reference).
Some suggested and related subject headings to browse in the catalog include:
| Homeless persons |
Homeless children |
Homeless women |
Homeless youth |
Street children |
Shelters for the homeless |
| Homeless families |
Runaway teenagers |
Youth--Housing |
| Poor women |
Poor children |
Marginality, Social |
| Housing policy--United States |
Social work with the homeless |
|
! Research tips: For an historical perspective, try subject searches
using the terms tramps, begging, poor laws, skid row, squatters, squatter
settlements, etc. You can also use Mirlyn to search for items on the topic
of homelessness by call number. To do this select the search term "Call number
begins with..." then enter a call number associated with this topic. It is
best to start your call number search as general as possible. For example,
if you find a book on homelessness with the call number HV 4505 .W531
2003, enter HV 4505 for a call number search in Mirlyn
and your results will be of a similar topic. You may also want to review the
Social Work Library's Subject
Browsing Guide for possible call numbers related to homelessness.
Reference Books
Borgatta, E.F. & Montgomery, R.J. (Eds.). (2000). Encyclopedia of
sociology (2nd ed.). New York: Macmillan Reference USA. HM 17 .E51 2000
Reference (See Homelessness)
DeFranco, F.M. (Ed.). (1996). Human service organizations and their publications
: a directory of selected sources. Alexandria, Va.: Council on Social
Work Education. HV 89 .H8491 1996 Reference
Edwards, R.L. (Ed.). (2000). Encyclopedia of social work (19th ed.).
Washington,DC: NASW Press. HV 89 .S6 Reference (See Homeless families;
Homelessness; Runaway youths; Health care: homeless people)
Ekerdt, D.J. (Ed.). (2002). Encyclopedia of aging. New York: Macmillan
Reference USA. HQ 1061 .E5341 2002 Reference (See Homelessness)
Fantasia, R. and Isserman, M. (1994). Homelessness: a sourcebook. New
York: Facts on File. HV 4505 .F361 1994 Reference
Hombs, M.E. (2001). American homelessness (3rd ed.). Santa Barbara,
CA: ABC-CLIO. HV 4505 .H6471 2001 Reference
Kazdin, A.E. (Ed.). (2000). Encyclopedia of psychology. Washington,
D.C.: American Psychological Association and Oxford Press. BF 31 .E531 2000
Reference (See Homelessness)
Levenson, D. (Ed.). (2004). Encyclopedia of Homelessness. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Shinn, M., Burke, P.D. & Bedford, S. (Eds.). (2002). Homelessness
: abstracts of the psychological and behavioral literature, 1967-1990 . Washington,
D.C.: American Psychological Association. Z 7164 .H72 H651 1990 Reference
Smelser, N.J. & Baltes, P.B. (Eds.). (2001). International encyclopedia
of the social & behavioral sciences. Amsterdam; Elsevier. H 41 .I581
2001 Reference (See Homelessness; Street Children)
Books
Baum, A.S. and Burnes, D.W. (1993). A Nation in denial: The truth about
homelessness. Boulder, CO : Westview Press. HV 4505 .B3781 1993
Burt, M., Aron, L.Y, and Lee, E. (2001). Helping America's homeless : Emergency
shelter or affordable housing? Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute
Press. HV 4505 .H41 2001
Choi, N.G. and Snyder, L.J. (1999). Homeless families with children: A
subjective experience of homelessness. New York : Springer. HV 4505
.C461 1999
Douglass, R.L. (1995). The state of homelessness in Michigan: A research
study. Lansing, Mich.: Michigan State Housing Development Authority.
HV 4506 .M5 D68
Failer, J.L. (2002). Who qualifies for rights? Homelessness, mental illness,
and civil commitment. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. KF 480 .F251
Feldman, L.C. (2004). Citizens without shelter: Homelessness, democracy,
and political exclusion. Ithaca : Cornell University Press. HV 4505
.F451 2004
Glasser, I. and Bridgman, R. (1999). Braving the street: The anthropology
of homelessness. New York : Berghahn Books. HV 4505 .G531 1999
Burt, M.R. et al. (1999). Homelessness:
Programs and the people they serve : findings of the National Survey of
Homeless Assistance Providers and Clients. Washington, D.C.: Interagency
Council on Homelessness, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Hopper, K. (2003). Reckoning with homelessness. Ithaca : Cornell
University Press. HV 4505 .H6651 2003
Jones, B.E. (1986). Treating the homeless: urban psychiatry's challenge.
Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Press. RC 451.4 .H64 T41 1986
Kuhlman, T.L. (1994). Psychology on the streets: Mental health practice
with homeless persons. New York: John Wiley & Sons. RC 451.4 .H64
K841 1994
Lederman, J. (Ed.). (1993). Housing America: Mobilizing bankers, builders
and communities to solve the nation's affordable housing crisis. Chicago:
Probus Publishing. HD 7293 .H573611 1993
Mayers, M. (2001). Street kids and streetscapes: Panhandling, politics
and prophecies. New York: Peter Lang. HV 875.55 .M381 2001
Ogilvie, R.S. (2004). Voluntarism, community life, and the American ethic.
Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. HV 4506 .N6 O351 2004
Peterson, R.W., Baker, G.A. and Weiseth, M.A. (1997). Caring for youth
in shelters: Effective strategies for professional caregivers. Boys Town,
NE: Boys Town Press. HV 1431 .P48 1997
Ringheim, K. (1990). At risk of homelessness: The roles of income and
rent. New York: Praeger. HD 7287.96 .U5 R56 1990
Slesnick, N. (2004). Our runaway and homeless youth: A guide to understanding.
Westport, CT: Praeger. HV 1431 .S541 2004
Solomon, C. and Jackson-Jobe, P. (Eds.). (1992). Helping homeless people:
Unique challenges and solutions. Alexandria, VA : American Association
for Counseling and Development. HV 4505 .H431 1992
Task Force on Homelessness and Severe Mental Illness. (1992). Outcasts
on Main street: Report of the federal task force on homelessness and severe
mental illness. [Washington, D.C.]: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services
in cooperation with the Interagency Council on the Homeless and the Task
Force on Homelessness and Severe Mental Illness. RC 451.4 .H67 U5411 1992
Williams, J. C. (2003). "A roof over my head": Homeless women and the
shelter industry. Boulder, CO : University Press of Colorado. HV 4505
.W531 2003
Yeich, S. (1994). The politics of ending homelessness. Lanham, MD
: University Press of America. HV 4505 .Y451
Journals
While the Social Work Library does subscribe to one journal that deals solely
with homelessness, there are several journals containing articles which adequately
cover the topic. However, to find the best article for one's topic, it is recommended
that one use the appropriate indexes/databases first. Unless otherwise indicated,
all titles listed are available in the Social Work Library. For details on
specific library holdings, consult Mirlyn.
American
Journal of Orthopsychiatry. Washington, D.C.: Educational
Publishing Foundation
Child
Abuse and Neglect. New Haven, CT: Pergamon
Community
Mental Health Journal. New York: Springer
Journal
of Children and Poverty. New York: Institute for Children
and Poverty
- Full text available only to U-M students, faculty, and staff (2000-present);
available on campus at Social Work Library (1996-present)
- Indexed in: Sociological
Abstracts
Journal
of Social Distress and the Homeless. New York: Psycke-Logo
Press
Housing
Policy Debate. Washington, DC : Office of Housing Policy Research,
Fannie Mae
- Full text available only to U-M students, faculty, and staff (1993-present);
available on campus at: Hatcher Graduate library (1991-1992)
- Indexed in: Ageline, Criminal
Justice Abstracts
Journal
of Housing Economics. Orlando, FL. : Academic Press
- Full text available only to U-M students, faculty, and staff (1993-present)
- Indexed in: Ageline
SAMHSA News. Rockville,
MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
- Full text available (2002-present)
- Not indexed
Databases
The University of Michigan subscribes to a number of databases which contain
useful information about homelessness in America and elsewhere. Use of many
of these databases is restricted to the U of M community. These databases are
identified with this symbol: 
.
For a complete description of a database, including years of coverage, please
see the Social Work Library's Alphabetical
List of Databases.
- AGELINE
- Try a descriptor search for homeless and united states.
- Child
Abuse, Child Welfare and Apotion
- Try a keyword search for homeless children, homelessness, homeless
shelters, emergency shelter, or shelter programs
- CQ
Congress Collection
- Try the terms homeless or homelessness, or homeless veterans,
or homeless shelters in the quick search box for information on the
history of congressional homeless policy.
- Criminal
Justice Abstracts
- Try a descriptor search for homeless or homelessness.
- ERIC
- Try a descriptor search for homeless people.
- Ethnic
Newswatch
- Try a descriptor search for homeless people.
- Family & Society
Studies Worldwide
- Try an index term search for homeless or homelessness.
- LegalTrac
- Try a subject term search for homeless persons or homelessness or homeless
children or homeless shelters or homeless women or homeless
youth or Social Work with the Homeless or tramps.
- LexisNexis
Congressional
- Click on the link labeled"Congressional" found under "Search for
other information" on the left of the default search page. Search bills,
indexes, legislative history using the word homeless or homelessness. Try
searching forbill number HR 2897 for the "Bringing America
Home Act".
- LexisNexis
Statistical
- Try a subject term search for homeless population or emergency
shelters.
- ProQuest
Research Library
- Try browsing ProQuest topics for suggested topics like homeless people or homeless
people AND Social conditions & trends or homeless
people AND social services or homeless youth.
- PSYCINFO
- Try a descriptor term search for homeless or homeless mentally
ill.
- Sexual
Diversity Studies: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender
Abstracts
- Try an index term, using the advanced search option for homeless or homeless
adolescents, homeless children, homeless men, homeless people or homeless
persons.
- Social
Work Abstracts
- Try a subject term search for homeless, homeless-, homelessness or homlessness-.
- Sociological
Abstracts
- Try a descriptor term search for homelessness.
Videos
The University of Michigan Askwith Media Library has videos
on homelessness which are listed below.
Aikin, S. & Aparicio, C. (1990). The salt mines. San Francisco,
CA: Frameline. Video 34117-H Film & Video Library
Autonomous People's Anarchist Group. (2001). San Jose gentrified.
[California]: Autonomous People's Anarchist Group. Video 35689-H Film & Video
Library
Brand, B. (1991). Home less home. New York: Parabola Arts Foundation,
Inc. Video 21189-H Film & Video Library
Choy, C. (Producer). (1993). Fall of the I hotel. San Francisco:
Distributed by NAATA. Video 37601-H Film & Video Library
Durrin, G.(1988). Promises to keep. Washington, D.C.: Durrin Productions,
Inc. Video 13572-H Film & Video Library
Glaser, T.E. & Ohayon, M. (1992). It was a wonderful life. [New
York]: Docurama. DVD 37778-D Film & Video Library
Golden Dome Productions. (1996). Miracle on South Michigan street. South
Bend, IN: Golden Dome Productions. Video 27466-H Film & Video Library
Hunt, K. (1993). No place like home. [Berkeley, CA]: University
of California Extension Center for Media and Independent Learning. Video 26994-H
Film & Video Library
Joseph Feury Productions. (1987). Down and out in America. Oak Forest,
IL: MPI Home Video. Video 21262-H Film & Video Library
NBC News. (1988). Home street home. Chicago, IL: Films, Inc. Video
13019-H Film & Video Library
Raindog Films production. (1997). Taylor's campaign. Santa Monica,
CA.: Raindog Films. Video 34212-H Film & Video Library
Seidman, T. & Lapidese, J. (1988). Lost Angeles: the story of tent
city. Berkeley, CA: University of California Extension Media Center.
Video 13574-H Film & Video Library
Singer, M. (2001). Dark Days. New York: Palm Pictures. DVD 33356-D
Film & Video Library
Wade, C. (1996). Almost home. Boston: Fanlight Productions. Video
29122-H Film & Video Library
Washington Project for the Arts and Video/Action Fund. (1990). Shooting
back. [Santa Monica, CA]: Venice Arts. Video 37357-H Film & Video
Library
Other Libraries
Not all resources on homelessness are found at the Social Work Library. The
following libraries also have a number of resources on this topic:
Selected Web Resources on Homelessness
Hundreds of web sites may be appropriate for research on homelessness. To
assist researchers on this topic, we have identified key web sites and have
catogorized them into government/legal, statistics, nonprofit organizations,
and local agency sites.
Government and Legal Resources on the Web:
- American Bar Association Commission
on Homelessness and Poverty (http://www.abanet.org/homeless)
- The ABA Commission promotes pro bono legal services for the homeless and
works to educate the public on legal issues related to homelessness.
- U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services (http://www.bphc.hrsa.gov)
- The resource center provides links to directories, bibliographies, organizations, and
publications published by this agency.
- National Clearinghouse on Families
and Youth (http://www.ncfy.com/)
- Part of the Administration for Children
and Families, the NCFY offers a database of journal article citations,
briefs, and URL addresses to online articles on topics involving children
and families, searchable by keyword. There are nearly 600 citations on
homelessness.
- Homeless Policy
Academies (http://www.hrsa.gov/homeless/index.htm)
- "The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development and other Federal agencies designed a series
of Policy Academies to help state and local policy makers improve access
to mainstream resources for people who are homeless. Each state develops
an action plan outlining its implementation and evaluation process."
- Interagency Council on Homelessness (http://www.ich.gov)
- "ICH was created in 1987 in the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance
Act. Its mission is to coordinate the national response to homelessness.
ICH is composed of the directors of 18 federal departments and agencies whose
policies and programs have some responsibility for homeless services, including
HUD, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of
Labor (DOL), and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)." The web site provides
links to articles and reports on the work of this council, which includes
an Innovative Initiatives web
page with links to innovative programs working toward alleviating homelessness.
- National Council for Homeless
Education/SERVE Center (http://www.serve.org/nche/)
- NCHE is funded by the U.S. Department of Education and works as a clearinghouse
of information for people interested in improving the education of homeless
children and youth. The web site has many excellent resources,
including fliers, fact sheets, PowerPoint presentations, and posters for
helping homeless children and families.
-
- Homelessness Resource Center (http://www.nrchmi.samhsa.gov/)
- Part of the Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration, this web site offers hundreds of resources,
categorized by tags.
- Social Security Administration (http://www.ssa.gov/homelessness/)
- This web site lists services available from this administration for the
homeless along with links to other governmental resources and advocacy groups.
- U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development (http://www.hud.gov/homeless/)
- HUD provides a number of important links to government as well as private
and nonprofit information on housing and the homeless. The web site provides
a library with links to publications on homelessness, links to funding sources
for homeless programs, lists of facts and other federal programs which provide
services to the homeless. This web site also has a number of databases with
facts, shelters and services searchable by state. Also, see HUD
USER, "an information source for housing and community development researchers,
academics, policymakers, and the American public."
- U.S.
Department of Labor (http://www.dol.gov//dol/audience/aud-homeless.htm)
- The U.S. Department of Labor web page on homelessness offers several links
including best practices programs dealing with homelessness and labor, reentry
programs for prisoners to help curb homelessness, grants for homeless services
and FirstStep an
interactive tool funded by multiple government agencies to help those serving
the homeless navigate through possible federal benefits for their homeless
clients.
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (http://www1.va.gov/homeless/)
- The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs offers many programs for the homeless
veteran including grants, housing referrals, and health care services.
- White
House Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives: Homelessness (http://www.whitehouse.gov/government/fbci/grants-catalog-homelessness.html)
- This site offers a list of federal grants offered for programs working
with the homeless.
Statistical Resources:
- National
Alliance to End Homelessness: Data and Research (http://www.endhomelessness.org/back/index.htm)
- Nonprofit organization whose mission is to inform "policy makers at the
federal level about ways in which they can help to end homelessness across
the nation". This site also features sections on policy, legislation and
advocacy related to homelessness.
- Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Homeless Statistics
and Data (http://www.samhsa.gov/Matrix/statistics_homeless.aspx)
- Links to the National Resource
Center on Homelessness and Mental Illness and census bureau information.
- LexisNexis
Statistical Universe
- Indexes and abstracts to statistical publications, both government and
private.
- Poverty
and Homelessness Publications from HUD User(http://www.huduser.org/publications/povsoc.html)
- Publications available for download or order.
- U.S.
Conference of Mayors' Hunger and Homelessness Survey(http://www.usmayors.org/uscm/hungersurvey/2004/onlinereport/HungerAndHomelessnessReport2004.pdf)
-
- U.S.
Census National Survey of Homeless Assistance Providers and Clients (NSHAPC)
- Data
files are available for downloading on the U.S. Census web
site. The survey results were published in 1999 by the Interagency Council
on the Homeless as Homelessness:
programs and the people they serve, also available at the Social
Work Library (HV 4505 .H6578 1999)
Nonprofit Organizations:
- Corporation for Supportive Housing (http://www.csh.org)
- "CSH helps communities create permanent housing with services to prevent
and end homelessness." Their web site provides links to research and reviews
on homelessness and related topics.
- Housing Assistance Council (http://www.ruralhome.org/)
- The Housing Assistance Council is devoted to helping meet the housing
needs of the rural poor. This web site has several articles on rural homelessness.
- National Alliance to End Homelessness (http://www.naeh.org/)
- The aim of this organization is to create an alliance of public and private
groups with a goal of reducing or eliminating homelessness. This web site
offers background and statistics on homelessness, policy and legislation
and links to best practices dealing with homelessness.
- National Association for the Education
of Homeless Children and Youth (http://www.naehcy.org/)
- Connects educators, parents, advocates and researchers on the needs and
rights of the education of homeless children. This is a good site for information
on legislation and policy on homelessness and children.
- National Health Care for the Homeless
Council (http://www.nhchc.org/)
- A council of over 65 organizational members and 650 individual clinical
members who support the health care needs of the homeless. The web site provides
links to advocacy, research, training, clinical resources and publications
on homelessness and health care.
- National Law Center on
Homelessness and Poverty (http://www.nlchp.org)
- Serves as the "legal arm of the nationwide movement to end homelessness".
This group's web site provides statistics on homelessness, papers and publication
on homelessness, and a number of links
to other resources on this topic.
- National
Network for Youth (http://www.nn4youth.org/)
- NN4Y is a nonprofit organization working for the needs youths "who face
greater odds due to abuse and neglect, homelessness, lack of resources, community
prejudice, differing abilities and other life challenges." This web site
offers fact sheets on public policy affecting at-risk youth, publications,
training opportunities, and advocacy tips for those working with this population.
- National Coalition for Homeless
Veterans (www.nchv.org)
- The NCHV "seeks to eliminate homelessness in the veteran community and
work its way out of business." The organization's web site provides resources
for homeless veterans and those working with this population.
- National Coalition for the
Homeless (http://www.nationalhomeless.org/)
- Using grassroots organization, public education and public policy advocacy,
this group seeks to end homelessness by concentrating on housing justice,
education justice, healthcare justice, and civil and voting rights. The web
site provides fact sheets on homelessness and updates to legislation and
public policy on homelessness.
- National Policy and Advocacy Council
on Homelessness (http://www.npach.org/)
- Helps to education the public and policy makers on homelessness and promotes
homeless policy which is appropriate to the needs of the local community.
NPACH also aims to connect various organizations to advocate for the homeless,
such as local community organizations, public schools, and the workplace.
The web site contains fact sheets, policy papers, a report archive and additional
links related to homeless issues.
- National Student Campaign Against
Hunger and Homelessness (http://www.nscahh.org/)
- This organization's goal is to educate college students on how to advocate
for the hungry and homeless and to train these students to collaborate with
other local and national organizations toward these ends.
- Stand Up For Kids (http://www.standupforkids.org/)
- A national organization who's aim is to assist and stabilize homeless
and run away youth.
- Urban Institute (http://www.urban.org/)
- "The Urban Institute is a nonprofit nonpartisan policy research and educational
organization established to examine the social, economic, and governance
problems facing the nation." A number of articles on the topic of homelessness
are available on this web site.
Local Michigan Agencies and Resources:
- Washtenaw Housing Alliance (http://www.whalliance.org/)
-
- Shelter Association
of Washtenaw County (http://www.annarborshelter.org/index.cfm)
-
- A Home for Everyone:
Blueprint to End Homelessness in Washtenaw County
- Published by the Washtenaw County Government, City of Ann Arbor, City of
Ypsilanti and the Washtenaw Housing Alliance
- Covenant
House Michigan
- The "largest privately-funded childcare agency in the United States providing
shelter and service to homeless and runaway youth", there is a Covenant House
location in Detroit, Michigan.
- Interfaith Hospitality
Network of Washtenaw County (http://www.alphahouse-ihn.org/)
- IHN supports temporary shelter which is house on a rotating basis at local
congregations and is staffed by volunteers throughout Washtenaw county. In
1991 a more stable family shelter called Alpha House was built.
- Education
Project for the Homeless (http://www.wash.k12.mi.us/students/ephy.cfm)
- EPHY is "a program of the Washtenaw Intermediate School District, has
been serving homeless families and their children in Washtenaw County, Michigan
since 1992."
- Michigan Coalition Against
Homelessness(http://www.mihomeless.org)
- This web site has links to directories of services for the homeless available
in Michigan. There is also a list of Michigan groups advocating for and helping
the homeless of the state of Michigan.
- Ozone House(http://www.ozonehouse.org/)
- "Services for youth ages 10–20 and their families experiencing crisis
or conflict, runaway and homeless youth, and abused or neglected youth."
- HUD in Michigan (http://www.hud.gov/local/index.cfm?state=mi)
- Provides news items, annual reports and grant notices on homelessness
from the Department of Housing and Urban Development for the state of Michigan.
- S.O.S. Community Services (http://www.soscs.org/)
- "Provides therapeutic day care, after-school opportunities, a summer enrichment
program, and a parenting/play group for homeless children participating in
SOS programs."
- Father Patrick Jackson House (http://www.fpjhp.org/)
- "Father Patrick Jackson House (Father Pat’s) is a non-denominational
residential program serving homeless, pregnant and parenting adolescents
and their children."
- Avalon Housing, Inc. (http://www.avalonhousing.org)
- "A non-profit, community-based organization providing permanent affordable
housing."
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