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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Western Michigan University

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

2017

Homelessness

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Barriers To Food Security Experienced By Families Living In Extended Stay Motels, Stephanie Gonzalez Guittar Jan 2017

Barriers To Food Security Experienced By Families Living In Extended Stay Motels, Stephanie Gonzalez Guittar

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Families who are food insecure do not have regular access to food, access to enough food to satisfy their hunger, or have to resort to extraordinary measures to access food such as traveling to food pantries and other emergency food sources. This article focuses on low-income families with children who live in extended stay motels and experienced food insecurity. Families reported several indicators of food insecurity and discussed the barriers to food security they experienced as a result of living in a motel. Families reported that the locations of the motels, lack of transportation, the lack of storage space and …


The Policy Nexus: Panhandling, Social Capital And Policy Failure, Amanda R. Tillotson, Laura Lein Jan 2017

The Policy Nexus: Panhandling, Social Capital And Policy Failure, Amanda R. Tillotson, Laura Lein

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In this paper, we analyze a unique mixed methods data set based on survey responses (n=108) and intensive interviews (n=18) with panhandlers in Austin, Texas. We examine the way in which failures of primary and secondary social capital interact to create the conditions of extreme poverty and homelessness that lead to panhandling. We find that a large majority of these individuals are working-age adults who lack access to social policy supports that would allow them to weather periods of unemployment produced by health issues and other personal difficulties.