Social support and social network ties among the homeless in a downtown Atlanta park

✍ Scribed by Donald C. Reitzes; Timothy J. Crimmins; Johanna Yarbrough; Josie Parker

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2011
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 139 KB
• Volume: 39
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0090-4392
• DOI: 10.1002/jcop.20431

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

This study applies a typology of social support with 3 categories of social networks to investigate social ties and their benefits for homeless people. Data were derived from a 2‐year long series of participant observations of homeless or precariously housed people who came regularly to a downtown Atlanta public park. The findings are as follows: (a) the homeless men and women who regularly visited the park obtained four types of support: tangible, advice, belonging, and esteem support from non‐kin, family, and formal social services; and (b) the homeless combined support provided by different social networks in attempts to address their substantial needs. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.