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Homelessness: A Qualitative Analysis

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Homelessness should be a major concern in the United States; more than five hundred-thousand people are homeless in the United States, a quarter of them are children. Does substance abuse correlate to homelessness? There are many studies that would say that the drug or alcohol abuse constitutes a higher proportion of homelessness than the mentally and physically ill. This study provides qualitative analysis between drug users and whether it correlates to homelessness. This analysis also considers the public secrecy in disclosure of their drug addiction. By using literature reviews, I have a better understanding of the previous research that was done and what I could do differently that would be even more effective.
I would first examine recent case histories of people …show more content…
Participant observation, in- depth interviews, and focus groups are the main qualitative methods that would be used. I would use participant observation in my field reserve to observe the homeless population in Bakersfield and see whether it would coincide with the substance abuse. A fellow researcher would be the participant in a homeless community and observe and write down what they can find as well as their own experiences. Through this covert observation, it does raise ethical issues, therefore I would have a fellow researcher to be in this covert operation. One of the more unstructured interview would be used, in-depth interviewing will help bring new information and perspectives. There will be a simple random sample of homeless people dealing with drug addiction. This interview will elicit many sensitive personal viewpoints and information that will be very important for this research. This interview will last about 90 minutes and the location would be wherever the participant feels comfortable such as a private room or study office. Using in- depth interviews will help get personal through the positive and topics that will be covered such as

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