A major purpose of the proposed work is to understand the differential impact of the conditions of homelessness on a population that used the NYC shelter system for homeless adults in 1987. Particular focus will be placed on housing status and other quality of life indicators observed in 1990 as outcome variables. It is hypothesized that 1990 quality of life will be directly related to the consumer's ability to cope with the conditions of homelessness by negotiating entitlements and needed health and mental health services, avoiding the problem of substance abuse, maintaining satisfactory levels of health and family relationships and others. To achieve these aims, representative samples of 304 women and 848 men interviewed in 1987 as residents in the NYC shelter system will again be interviewed in 1990, using essentially the same 57 page protocol. This protocol includes 12 scaled measured, modified or developed for a homeless population, with reliability and predictive validity established on 1985 and 1987 epidemiological surveys. Models based on the literature and 1987 cross-sectional analyses will be developed to select 1987 characteristics of consumers and measures of 1987-1990 change in important statuses to predict 1990 housing status and quality of life. The 1990 health, mental health, substance abuse and diagnostic status (mental illness) of men and women will also be evaluated.
| Barrow, S M; Herman, D B; Cordova, P et al. (1999) Mortality among homeless shelter residents in New York City. Am J Public Health 89:529-34 |
| Herman, D B; Susser, E S; Struening, E L (1994) Childhood out-of-home care and current depressive symptoms among homeless adults. Am J Public Health 84:1849-51 |
| Herman, D B; Struening, E L; Barrow, S M (1993) Self-assessed need for mental health services among homeless adults. Hosp Community Psychiatry 44:1181-3 |
