There are inconsistent research findings regarding the prevalence of mental illness in homeless individuals of all ages. Most studies, both in Britain and in America, have concentrated on homeless persons in hostels or shelters. A few American works have examined individuals sleeping on the streets but this is a neglected area of research in Britain. Very few studies have examined the prevalence of mental illness in elderly homeless persons. This article reports findings from a recent investigation of the mental health problems of elderly homeless people who were sleeping on the streets in central London. Through observation and interviews it appeared that a high proportion of these individuals had mental health problems. Whereas nearly half of the elderly men appeared to be depressed, the majority of women either portrayed thought disturbances or were identified as having severe memory problems.
KEY woms-Homelessness, elderly homelessness, depression, thought disturbances, memory problems.
Early social research on homelessness was dominated by studies of alcoholic men in skid row areas in America (Blumberg et al., 1960; Bogue, 1963; Bahr and Caplow, 1974). Over the past decade studies have concentrated on the prevalence of mental illness in homeless individuals. The majority of these works are American, as research in Britain in this field remains scant.
American studies have produced controversial findings regarding the proportion of homeless persons who are mentally ill, ranging from 15% (Snow et al., 1986) to 84% (Arce et al., 1983) and 91% (Bassuk et al., 1984). Recent works have documented the degree of severe mental illness found in these individuals, but findings still range from 20% to 50% (Koegel and Burnam, 1992). Results from British studies have also varied. Whereas Crossley and Denmark (1969) found that 20% of residents in a Salvation Army hostel had a psychotic illness, Marshall (1989) noted that 67% of residents in two hostels in Oxford had psychotic symptoms.
Research on the mental health of older homeless persons is very scant, both in America (Brickner et al., 1990) and in Britain.