Homelessness in the United States: Policy considerations

Over the last 15 years, the general public, media, scholars, and policy,nak ers have all become concerned about homelessness as a widespread social pro blem. The amount of money the federal government spends on housing and the number of scholarly publications on homelessness have grown dramatically du ring this period. The general public is not only well informed about homele ssness but has indicated a willingness to pay higher taxes to help homeless people obtain housing. Three discernible groups active in the debate-polit icians, housing advocates, and social scientists-often use different study methods, adhere to different estimates on the prevalence of homelessness, a nd hold divergent beliefs about the causes of homelessness. While the debat e about numbers and prospective solutions continues, the duration of the pr oblem defies emergency relief measures. Short-term measures are likely to b e counterproductive if they are funded at the expense of long-term solution s. Attention to the wide array of housing problems and cooperation among st ate and local governments and community groups is essential if efforts to e nd homelessness are to succeed. (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.