Ira Hogg

SOWK 441
September 17, 2023
Comba'ng Homelessness

Homelessness can be viewed and defined in many ways, depending on the organization

or community. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association,

experiencing homelessness is seen as “an individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular, and

adequate nighttime residence, such as those living in emergency shelters, transitional housing, or

places not meant for habitation; an individual or family who will imminently lose their primary

nighttime residence (within 14 days), provided that no subsequent housing has been identified

and the individual/family lacks support networks or resources needed to obtain housing; an

unaccompanied youth under 25 years of age, or families with children and youth who qualify

under other Federal statutes, such as the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, have not had a lease

or ownership interest in a housing unit in the last 60 or more days, have had two or more moves

in the last 60 days, and who are likely to continue to be unstably housed because of disability or

multiple barriers to employment; or an individual or family who is fleeing or attempting to flee

domestic violence, has no other residence, and lacks the resources or support networks to obtain

other permanent housing” (Definitions of Homelessness | SOAR Works!, n.d.). Too many

populations fall within the confines of this definition. Society must understand the cause,

empathize with the populations affected, and sought out a way to rethink and rebrand this nation-

wide illness.

The cause of homelessness can come from a myriad of problems. Common explanations

to the struggle with this detrimental reality are sudden losses in employment, chronic or ongoing

mental health and behavioral crises, or simply falling behind financially; when inflation begins to

dominate the economic markets. These causes mainly attribute to a subjective view, through a

micro lens. Subjectivity of homelessness suggests the individual or family seemingly brought
 Ira Hogg
SOWK 441
September 17, 2023
about their own financial demise, thus leading to a loss in stable housing. On the other hand, an

objectivist will point out a materialistic or tangible catalyst that caused a selected population to

find their selves without adequate housing. Through this macro perspective, the system in which

these individuals are attached to has failed them and subsequently created barriers that hinder

their reintegration into society. Being homeless negatively affects your access to job

opportunities. Transportation to interviews and orientations are intermittent and unreliable.

Furthermore, most occupations require applicants to provide a steady address in which to send

paystubs, checks, W-2 tax forms, or other pertinent information via mail. Without this

information, some individuals are ineligible to receive a social security card, driver’s license,

voter registration card, Social Security Income (SSI) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance

Program (SNAP) benefits.

Homelessness is observed throughout various demographics; it is most prevalent within

marginalized communities, ethnic groups, and genders. According to USA Facts, “Pacific

Islanders have the highest rate of homelessness in the U.S. at 121 per 10,000 people. One reason

Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders have such high rates of homelessness could be because of

Hawaii’s lack of affordable housing. Many native Hawaiians are also on wait lists for home/land

leases”. Following behind at 48 per 10,000 is the Black community, Native Americans at 44 per

10,000, Multiple races at 36 per 10,000, White at 11 per 10,000, and Asian at 4 per 10,000”

(USAFacts, 2023). Veterans are observed as experiencing homelessness at alarming rates,

compared to the U.S.’s total population. The rate of homelessness for this group is “20 per

10,000 veterans, compared to the nation’s overall rate of 18 per 10,000” (USAFacts, 2023).

To assist these populations, we must rethink how we approach homelessness in our

country. Considering the workings of the Systems Theory, Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model
 Ira Hogg
SOWK 441
September 17, 2023
displays the interrelated organizations that greatly facilitate homelessness. Identifying the target

population, then zooming out the lens will reveal various policies, laws, and cultured norms that

allow an individual or group to experience homelessness. Some feel we must step away from

conversations that encourage a policy-driven attitude toward the eradication of chronic

homelessness; and adopt a more personal connection to the thought of granting someone a home

and not a house tracked on a data log. Others suggest we fight the infrastructure and remap the

underlying structure, in hopes to rebuild an economic foundation. This will certainly introduce

conflict. As a follower of Karl Marx, conflict is intentional and deserving of a system that has

ridden the backs of many marginalized groups; throughout its lifetime. Simply put, housing is

not the solution to homelessness. That would be similar to placing a Band-Aid on an arterial

wound. It is temporary and does not seal the issue in its entirety. With a top-down approach,

advocating through macro social settings, an individual must also incorporate root issues that

may enable or prolong homelessness. These items include mental illness, financial illiteracy, and

weak support groups. Without stability amongst these underlying issues, housing someone will

only set them onto another journey without a home.

 Ira Hogg
SOWK 441
September 17, 2023
References

1. USAFacts. (2023). How many homeless people are in the US? What does the

data miss? - USAFacts. USAFacts. https://usafacts.org/articles/how-many-

homeless-people-are-in-the-us-what-does-the-data-

miss/#:~:text=The%20Department%20of%20Housing%20and,about%202

%2C000%20people%20from%202020.

2. Definitions of Homelessness | SOAR Works! (n.d.).

https://soarworks.samhsa.gov/article/definitions-of-homelessness

3. O’Sullivan. (2020). Reimagining homelessness : for policy and practice (1st ed.).

Policy Press.

4. Synovec. (2020). Homelessness. Work (Reading, Mass.), 65(2), 233–234.

https://doi.org/10.3233/WOR-203099
 Rights-based Approach v. Needs-based Approach

Ira Hogg

College of Social Work, University of South Carolina

SOWK 441-001: Theories for Understanding Organization and Communities

Professor Melania Popa-Mabe

October 15, 2023

When deciding how to help a population, a social worker must determine whether to follow a

needs-based approach or a rights-based approach. Both are designed to enhance and facilitate a

better way of life for the population receiving the assistance. Although they can be similar in the

outcome of services, they differ in assumptions, applications, and processes. Neither approach

can supplement the other. They may compliment and add to an individual’s access to resources.

Rights-based Approach

Rights-based approach focuses on what is deemed by law or cultural norm as a human right. This

can consist of the right to shelter, food, and water. The list of rights often change based on the

differing regions throughout the world. In many cases it is seen as a “God” given right to

survival. According to the United Nations, “Human rights are rights inherent to all human

beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion,

language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without

discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent, and indivisible” (Introduction:

Rights-Based Versus Conventional Needs-Based Approaches to Clinical Practice, n.d.). Simply

put, rights-based approach focuses its framework on rights that are attained at birth.

Needs-based Approach

Needs are seen as an individualistic desire for an item, tangible and intangible. This is often

noted as being proportionate in measure to an individual’s own standard. “If we accept that

individuals are the only subjects capable of having a consciousness, then human needs are

individual needs – although they certainly may require social arrangements for their satisfaction.

In fact, their satisfaction has similarities with political processes in general: There must be some

consciousness of the need in the individual; this consciousness must become social and lead to

some form of organization through mobilization; there is often some kind of confrontation; a real
struggle to have the need satisfied may follow; and finally some form of transcendence with the

need satisfied individually and its sustained satisfaction more or less guaranteed/institutionalized

socially” ( Galtung, et al., 1977). As a social worker, knowing the needs of your client, based on

their background, socioeconomic status, and other demographic information, will greatly propel

your efforts when assisting them. Their needs can range from safety within their immediate

environment to social acceptance amongst peers and coworkers. Following the basis of Maslow’s

hierarchy of needs is a good starting position in assessing a client. Maslow believed every human

is in need of: physiological needs, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization.

Difference between the two Approaches

Needs-based approach differs from rights-based approach in various ways. Needs-based

approach is seldomly violated in high volumes. As when the violation of rights is envelops an

entire community, group, or population. With need-based approach, assistance is in the form of

microsocial work practices, while macrosocial work endeavors typically rectify human rights

violations. Given the distance of difference between the two approaches, social workers must be

able to clearly define solutions that apply to each side of the spectrum. One approach will not fit

the mold for the other, and can result in conflict and exclusion.
 References

Galtung, J., & Wirak, A. H. (1977). Human Needs and Human Rights-: A Theoretical Approach.
Bulletin of Peace Proposals, 8(3), 251-258. https://doi.org/10.1177/096701067700800309

Introduction: Rights-Based versus Conventional Needs-Based Approaches to Clinical Practice.

(n.d.). https://lawexplores.com/introduction-rights-based-versus-conventional-needs-based-
approaches-to-clinical-practice/#CR81
 Rights v. Needs approach to Homelessness

Ira Hogg

College of Social Work, University of South Carolina

SOWK 441-001: Theories for Understanding Organization and Communities

Professor Melania Popa-Mabe

October 15, 2023

 It’s no surprise homelessness plagues the many thriving metropolitan areas within

America. Communities either want the homeless population, or they fight to push them outside

of city limits. Why has this collective ailment become such a nuisance to the very societal

systems that has created it? According to Wisevoter.com, 569,334 individuals make up the United

States’ homeless population (Wisevoter, 2023). In some countries’ plight with homelessness, the

acquirement of an adequate shelter is held as a human right. While in other areas of the world,

this basic necessity is seen as an award given when an individual contributes to society in

capitalistic ways. Conflict begins to brew in the determination of whether to consider “adequate

living conditions” a human right or need. One can look at the answer to homelessness on a

rights-based approach, where the solution consists of a bird’s eye view of the systems that

facilitate homelessness, or it can be seen in a more subjective light. Homelessness can be

considered an individual problem, belonging only to the person it has greatly affected.

Rights-based Approach to Homelessness

To decide if a resource is inherited at birth and can be claimed en masse by a nation’s

population, it must undergo an analysis suitable for its reframing and longevity. The issue would

not only be to convince an entire populous of such a rule, but also the logistic difficulty of

disseminating this resource to everyone. Would those who have already purchased a dwelling

receive tax breaks, simply because their property would be grandfathered in? Would the

eligibility process be fixated upon equity and not equality, to see fit that everyone receives an

equal portion of land, a house, or adequate shelter? In an assumption, one could argue if these

inherited dwellings would reset once the owners are deceased, or if they would be placed in a

will, or trust to transfer to their dependents. Viewing homelessness as a fault of not already

having access to adequate shelter simply places a developed society on its head. To combat
homelessness with a rights-based approach would be to attack the illness at its core. To end

homelessness is not to provide housing to all, but simply to offer access to a formidable and

convenient shelter, whether temporary or permanent. This may come in the form of boarding

houses, emergency shelters, and transitioning facilities. Policies framing the idea of

homelessness and fueling the stigma that follows must be changed to allow the introduction of

shelter as a human right and not a personal preference.

Needs-based Approach to Homelessness

Relying on an individual to pursue their own source of housing would be to fulfill a

needs-based approach. Catering to the individual’s personal barriers that may act as a hindrance

to their access to adequate shelter, garners an individualistic solution. This focus is not on the

systems, nor the communities that may be structured in a way that invites homelessness, but a

closer look on how the individual interact with these systems. As a social worker, utilizing the

ecological model, the environment becomes a key player in identifying why and how the

individual experiencing homelessness fails to acquire and maintain adequate shelter. Moreover,

the symptoms addressed as causal factors of homelessness must be eradicated. Employment must

be attained, addictions kicked, maladaptive behaviors corrected, and reintegration back into a

capitalistic society must be ensured as well. When these tenets are acknowledged and satisfied,

an individual can eliminate homelessness on a personal scale.

 References

Wisevoter. (2023, June 13). Homeless Population by State 2023 -

Wisevoter. https://wisevoter.com/state-rankings/homeless-popula-on-by-state/
 Critique of Rights and Needs Approaches to Homelessness Pt. 4

Ira Hogg

College of Social Work, University of South Carolina

SOWK 441-001: Theories for Understanding Organization and Communities

Professor Melania Popa-Mabe

November 18, 2023

Intro

When devising a plan of attack in any area of responsibility, the social worker must weigh the pros and cons. An accurate

analysis of strengths and weaknesses must be conducted. The rights-bases and needs-based approaches are frameworks that can be

utilized to enhance social awareness, and ultimately facilitate the culture for change. Analyzing each side will reveal which is the

better path to embark on, when trailing solutions to social issues.

Rights-based Approach to Homelessness Strengths and Weaknesses

To decide if a resource is readily available at birth and can be utilized without natural barriers, by a nation’s population, would be an

analysis worthy of trial. During an examination of this trait, limiting factors would include the individual’s access to resources within

their community, cultural circle, and governmental systems. From a macro social work lens, denials of such resources begin at the

foundation of governmental systems, and trickles into cultural traditions, and community involvement. Political statutes and policies

may add to the construction and legitimacy of previously established barriers. With homelessness being criminalized and stigmatized

in most areas, to address this would have to be announced on a grand scale, amidst an unbiased audience. With these barriers as

weaknesses within this framework, there are however a few strengths. Knowing the history of a nation, its vulnerability to change, a Commented [PMM1]: Not clear what are the weaknesses;
if what you described above you consider weaknesses - why
you see these as weaknesses?
plan can alter its future existence, and enhance its emerging populations. To dwell on the past, we are forever enslaved to its mistakes.
Commented [ih2R1]: Barriers that s:gma:ze and
criminalize homelessness based on community biases and
Learning from these setbacks in the composition of a society, homelessness can be driven out by making the access to own housing a racial profiling
right. This macro approach to ratify the idea of homelessness as a deviant choice will allow members of society to fight for a right that Commented [PMM3]: Whose choice?
Commented [ih4R3]:
can ultimately propel its growth and prosperity. Laws will reflect this right as legislation, echoing a change nationally and abroad. This While working with the homeless popula:on and the
community affected by homelessness, many of the
businesses in downtown Columbia view homelessness as a
weakness is amplified when the right to affordable housing is being interpreted by more than one adjudicator. Deciding on who radical and deviant choice by the individual experiencing
homelessness
determines the degree to which an individual is awarded housing can highlight some individuals and exclude others, based on biases

in the selection process. Another weakness can be seen when individuals immigrate into the United States. They may not be awarded

affordable housing due to not being citizens. This gray area is blurred when discussing resources allocated for humanity but may seem

like a solid line not to cross when speaking for tax-paying citizens, versus individuals who have not yet acquired legal citizenship.

Needs-based Approach to Homelessness Strengths and Weaknesses

A more personalized approach to fixing homelessness can render an abundance of positive and negative outcomes. When the

individual is being seen as the reason for their problem, resources can become scarce, and the access to personalized assistance can

take months to occur. However, a customized package to offer affordable, or free housing to an individual experiencing homelessness

is a much cheaper endeavor, opposed to creating a policy to house individuals en masse. This can be viewed as a strength, because it

does not rely heavily on a community or state’s housing budget. The needs-based approach seems to be the popular method of dealing

with homelessness now. Various organizations will offer housing to individuals, based on eligibility criteria. This may offer a dwelling

to some, but not all who are in need. While analyzing the true difference between this framework’s strength and weakness, the practice
of micro social work shows us this model is effective short term. Needs based approach falls short in its inability to provide housing as

a resource long term and to multiple individuals in need.

Conclusion

Each approach comes with a list of its strengths, setbacks, and expectations to indefinitely change the way we view and exist in

society. The implementation of either approach requires an adjustment in manpower and realignment of funding. Both of these implies

an acceptance, a popular vote within the macro and micro fields of analysis. While both can be achieved in unison, a society or

community tends to rely heavily on one framework than the other. To accommodate those who are in need, we must dismiss what is

considered the “we’ve always done it this way” model, and invite a more innovative stance. The world cannot be changed with just

one individual in mind. To selfishly choose which cases of individual issues best suits our degree of charitable assistance will

perpetuate a failing model. As a people, we must accept the problem of homelessness in its entirety, with whomever it may affect, and

push for a legislation that will exile the mere stigma of it; thus promoting help for all.