Access Type

Open Access Thesis

Date of Award

January 2015

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Paul A. Toro

Abstract

Admission to an emergency shelter reflects an important outcome in a person's life, and many admissions to an emergency shelter reflects a human and financial cost. This article discusses the evolution of the measurement and understanding of homelessness. It looks at characteristics of people who make use of shelter in a chronic fashion to better understand what might predict risk for future continued use. This includes an analysis of a large dataset of emergency shelter utilization in Detroit Michigan collected between 2008 and 2012. Analysis reveals that fundamental demographic information, individual's interactions with the shelter system (good or bad), and affluence and education attainment meaningfully predict readmissions to emergency shelters.

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