Homelessness

Often considered as a distinctive subset of housing studies, homelessness has long been the focus of an abundance of multi-disciplinary research. People in homeless situations are at the sharpest end of poverty and experience marginalization in many aspects of their lives. Although homelessness intersects with a multitude of other social issues, within contemporary Western societies it is conceived as predominantly a housing issue. While homeless people suffer from the absence of safe and settled housing, they also suffer from their sense of home being severely disrupted and constrained. This, in turn, can impact on their wellbeing and sense of self. This chapter discusses some of the dominant ways in which homelessness is understood and researched, and advocates for an approach which explores people’s lived experiences. It argues that a focus on lived experiences can provide insights into the harms of homelessness including its relationship to home and identities.