california state university, northridge homelessness in
TRANSCRIPT
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE
Homelessness in Los Angeles County: Gaining Insight to the Success of Strategic Planning and
Implementation
A graduate project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements
For the degree of Master of Public Administration in Public Sector Management and Leadership
By
Benjamin Marker
December 2018
ii
Copyright by
Benjamin Marker 2018
iii
The Graduate project of Benjamin Marker is approved:
___________________________________ _________________
Dr. Rhonda Franklin Date
__________________________________ _________________
Dr. Henrik Minassians Date
__________________________________ __________________
Dr. Anaïs Valiquette L’Heureux, Chair Date
California State University, Northridge
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Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my family for their support and encouragement over the past two years,
particularly my grandmother Eva, and mother Niki. I would also like to thank the professors and
other instructors who imparted their knowledge, wisdom and guidance during the program.
Lastly, thank you to the diverse and unique group of colleagues and classmates of Beverly Hills
Cohort 145 who imparted their intelligence, experience and friendship.
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Table of Contents
Copyright Page ii
Signature Page iii
Acknowledgements iv
Abstract vii
Project Introduction 1
Background 4
Coordinated Entry System 4
Literature Review 7
Introduction 7
Public Perception 7
Costs to Society 9
Response Efforts 11
Theoretical frameworks 12
Research Gap 14
Summary 15
Research Question and Aim 16
Research Design 17
Approach 17
Design 17
Discussion 21
Implications of Research 21
Limitations 21
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Public Literacy 22
Budgetary Consequences 22
Ethical Considerations 22
Conclusion 24
References 26
Appendix A: Annotated Bibliography 29
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Abstract
Homelessness in Los Angeles County: Gaining Insight to the Success of Strategic Planning and
Implementation
By
Benjamin Marker
Master of Public Administration in Public Sector Management and Leadership
This research paper identifies the problems society faces surrounding homelessness in
Los Angeles County, and provides analysis of the current homelessness reduction efforts in
place. The research problem identifies the need to gain an understanding of how the homeless
population views implementation of this strategic planning from their perspective. The research
designed will be mostly qualitative, centered around an ethnography, during which the researcher
spends extensive time alongside different demographics within the homeless population,
collecting empirical data through participant observation. There will also be a quantitative
element of analysis, as the numbers from the Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count will be
evaluated to assess program effectiveness. Findings from the study will contribute to a better
understanding of the success of homeless reduction efforts in Los Angeles County, and provide
insight to how planning and implementation may be improved, through a ground level
interpretation of the system’s core users: people experiencing homelessness.
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Project Introduction
Homelessness is one of society's most pervasive and challenging problems. Few places
in the United States are undergoing as large a homelessness crisis than in Los Angeles County
(USHUD 2017). The effects of such a problem contribute to the detriment of thousands of lives
and reflect poorly on the success of a wealthy society to provide a system of governance that
ensures health, wellness and shelter for all.
Defining the causes of and needs of the homeless population is complex and requires
immersive exploration into the complex unique and largely misunderstood nature of the human
life, as it undergoes a transformation through the misfortunes of society, into a life without a
home.
Recent advances in public administrative efforts throughout the Southern California
region have provided data with which comparisons can be made, through a snapshot of the
homeless population at a given moment in time during the annual homeless count, as well as a
chronological analysis to monitor number of people experiencing homelessness and make
inferences about the effectiveness of the government’s efforts to reduce it.
In figure 1.1 below, the occurrence of homelessness as a percentage of those living in
unsheltered conditions is shown. This demonstrates not only the large number of people
experiencing homelessness in California, but that a majority of them are not living in designated
shelters.
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Source: (USHUD 2017)
Early on in the response effort, the combined resources of the City of Los Angeles and
Los Angeles County led to the creation of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority.
Through realizing initial progress in treating the homeless problems that plagued wide areas of
downtown Los Angeles, the effectiveness of the organization may have plateaued. Areas
experiencing the highest amount of homelessness have swelled, and many homeless individuals
have sought refuge in other communities, with the benefit of increased safety, open space and
resources.
The effect on society has been monumental, not only for the people experiencing the
effects of homelessness, but by the communities they inhabit, leading to neighborhood visual
blight, the blocking of public sidewalks, and concerns of safety and unsanitary conditions. The
rise in numbers and the geographical expansion of the homeless population has led to public
concern and a response from elected officials to do more to tackle the problem.
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The public outcry has reached a high, and despite massive public mandated funding
efforts, questions of how to best spend and implement abound. The process of combining the
knowledge and necessary resources for addressing one of society's most wicked and pervasive
problems entails a high level of leadership and coordination. The County of Los Angeles and the
cities within are facing a growing public backlash as leadership pushes to house homeless people
within communities of the general public. A call for commitment and shared responsibility has
been met with a mixture of public support and reprisal.
Homelessness has been a plague on humanities civilizations for thousands of years.
What has changed the most in the late twentieth century and early twenty first century are the
perceptions and attitudes surrounding the problem. Still, the homeless population has changed in
terms of demographics in the United States over the past 40 years. As noted by Culhane (2013),
researchers studying such demographics recognized the previously held social construct of the
homeless population was one of aged alcoholic men. As generations passed on, changes in the
images of who the homeless were began to take place.
“The predominant demographic groups in the new homeless population were able-bodied
young men, mostly black, and young women with their children. A new generation of
destitute poverty had burst forth, comprised of people primarily born between 1954 and
1967, who had the misfortune of coming of age during the double-dip recessions of the
late '70s and early '80” (Culhane p.66 2013).
Identification of these key demographics paints a different picture. It represents a
different cause, and it requires a different solution.
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Background
Supporting a homeless individual has been found to be significantly costlier than
providing public housing. The argument for supporting the homeless population through
providing housing can be made by exploring this phenomenon. The strain on public resources
and emergency response to medical and other emergencies related to the homeless has shown to
be largely ineffective in combating the root causes of the problem (Ku 2010). As such the most
recent efforts by local government have been through a highly coordinated and systemic
approach to alleviating the occurrence of homelessness.
Mayor Eric Garcetti is currently spearheading a push to make use of this funding and
break through the stagnation in building that has caused outrage by numerous stakeholders. In
an interview with Madeleine Brand of KRCW, one of his primary goals is to encourage
communities to work with Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority in starting construction on
new housing projects, in each district within the City of Los Angeles. He is creating an incentive
for districts with the allocation of additional funding to go towards cleaning up homeless
encampments and other visual blight in each district. Districts will however, have the option to
decline the option to participate in the program (Brand 2018). This stipulation makes it possible
for communities to organize and protest against the building of homeless housing, which could
halt this part of the mayor’s plan.
Coordinated entry system.
Modern planning within the City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County strives to
encompass all homeless persons, at all stages of homelessness. That is, tackling the issue
systemically, from multiple perspectives: one of preventative efforts; one of treatment and
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rehabilitation for those experiencing homelessness, both in the short term and on a chronic level;
and one of providing long term hosing for those most in need of it.
The Mayor’s office is responsible for generating political and public support for the
strategy, especially in making the public push for encouraging the shared responsibility across
Los Angeles area communities and neighborhoods, ensuring the production of service facilities
and housing projects funded by Measure HHH and Prop H. The City of Los Angeles and Los
Angeles Country together share responsible for the implementation and coordination of the
Coordinated Entry System (CES) as defined in the Comprehensive Homeless Strategy (City of
Los Angeles 2018). Both entities will also work together to address some of the underlying
causes of homelessness including wage growth, hiring practices beneficial to the homeless, and
the task of matching housing with those most in need. The Los Angeles Homeless Services
Authority (LAHSA) will play a large role in the administration of CES, housing, continuing the
annual Point-In -Time homeless counts, among other responsibilities. Non-profit partners
ranging from staffing service providers, care providers, and volunteers will also be integral to the
implementation of the plan, particularly at the ground level” (Marker 2018). A visual
representation of the Coordinated Entry System is shown below in Figure 1.2.
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Figure 1.2. (Comprehensive Homeless Strategy 2018)
In short, homelessness in Los Angeles County has a multitude of negative effects on
society, including significant strains on public resources such as emergency response and unpaid
emergency room visits. The comprehensive and collaborative nature of the coordinated entry
system and the LAHSA, in conjunction with voter approved funding measures designated toward
homeless services and housing, represents the most significant strategic planning and
implementation in decades.
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Literature Review
Introduction
The historical approach to combating homelessness in the Los Angeles County region has
shifted over time. From a laissez-faire attitude, to public outcry and an underwhelming response
by multiple authorities with a lack of coordination, the early efforts to curtail homelessness were
of limited success. Multiple factors including rising costs in housing, limited resources, along
with a multitude of other socio-economic factors, has led to a recent and significant rise in
homelessness.
Public Perception
Political influences.
The changes in political attitudes towards homelessness have also changed significantly
during the past quarter century. During the Reagan administration, a shift in attitude away from
the federal responsibility of studying and combating the crisis, was largely the result of the belief
that homelessness was a purely result of personal problems, and not connected with systemic
issues such as poverty and unfortunate economic conditions. “The parameters of acceptable
research were highly circumscribed by Reagan administration officials, who clung to a
historically rooted ideological belief that homelessness resulted mainly from individual character
flaws” (Jones 2015 p.166). The lackadaisical attitude towards comprehensive research led to
many in the mental health field to adopt or continue the same fundamental beliefs that these
personal flaws were the root cause of all homelessness.
As a result of this isolationism, the people experiencing homelessness were blamed for
their own conditions of living. The effects of these beliefs and attitudes created a culture of
separation, in which the homeless became more marginalized and segregated within society, and
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the mentality of ‘their problem, not mine’ abounded. The attitudes of most mental health experts
during the 1980’s focused on deinstitutionalization as the cause of homelessness. This approach
largely corroborated much of the Regan administration’s attitude toward homelessness, keeping
systemic inadequacies from being addressed. A tendency to point towards mental illness as a
result of deinstitutionalization or lack of treatment also played a role in society’s attitudes
towards the homeless.
Mental health.
An additional misunderstanding of the homeless demographic is that severe
psychological problems are widespread among most of the homeless population, and that these
conditions are to blame. Evidence now suggests that “only 25 to 33 percent of homeless single
adults have a major mental disorder that in prior years would have meant institutionalization”
(Rafferty1989 p.1614). The misconception and stigma surrounding mental health among
homeless populations has been a significant factor in their mis-categorization and in the lack of
appropriate organizational response. Another area of changing demographic is that of the youth
homeless population.
Early ethnographical studies by Baxter and Hopper contextualized social science’s
understanding of the constitution of the homelessness population (Jones 2015). They evidenced
the occurrence of homelessness was not experienced only by the mentally and physically
disabled, but that such individuals are part of a special subset of the population, with unique
struggles and needs that require a unique set of services and responses by public administrators.
Coupled with the Regan administration’s distance from ownership of the homelessness epidemic
and tendency for reduction of social research, the notion of homelessness as an individualized
problem, rather than a structural one, paved the way for a lack of federal response to the crisis
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(Jones 2015). Through a lack of support for nuanced social research of homelessness, the federal
government paved the way for a series of misinformed approaches to understanding pervasive
homelessness.
Costs to Society
Financial constraints.
The continuation of a homeless epidemic in the Los Angeles region means even higher
public costs on the systems that currently support it. The county’s support systems include
mental health outreach and counseling, other medical care services, drug rehabilitation programs,
and temporary homeless shelters among others. Many of these programs have been stressed and
underfunded to the point where their effectiveness is questionable (Culhane 2008). The quality
of service and of shelter facilities, along with a lacking sense of safety in these environments
have impacted the perception, both to the homeless individuals, and the general public who
encounter them. Monetary costs incurred by society from the homeless epidemic are high. One
such aspect is the incredibly expensive cost of repeat emergency services for homeless
individuals.
“The high frequency of repeat (Emergency Room) visits identifies a systemic
shortcoming and underscores the need for policy remedies for homelessness in the U.S.” (Ku
2010 p.404). A lack of medical insurance, unhealthy and unsanitary living conditions, and a host
of medical and mental health problems, especially as they exist in the aging homeless population
has led to a cycle of short-term emergency response solutions, without addressing systemic root
problems.
Significant monetary investment by the public is also at stake. Passed in 2016,
Proposition HHH was passed by 77% of voters, providing a mandate for substantial funding to
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begin building permanent supportive homeless housing now. The $1.2 Billion proposition will
be paid for by a $0.348 per square foot property tax (City of LA, Supportive Housing 2018).
Measure H was subsequently passed in March of 2017, by 69% of voters. The measure is
intended to raise funds for the development and implementation of the comprehensive “Los
Angeles County Plan to Combat and Prevent Homelessness” (Ballotpedia 2017). This measure
is a 0.25 percent sales tax in Los Angeles County, lasting ten years.
As part of the Proposition HHH Development Strategy, the City of Los Angeles has provided up
to date information on the progress of providing permanent supportive housing.
Publicly mandated funding.
With recently adopted voter approved funding efforts, such as Proposition HHH and
Measure H, local and state authorities have significant resources and a mandate to act swiftly.
Proposition HHH was a $1.4 Billion bond measure specifically to fund permanent supportive
housing for the homeless population throughout the state (City of LA, Prop HHH 2018). Voters
elected to adopt Measure H, which provides additional funds through a quarter cent sales tax,
imposed throughout Los Angeles Country. Its funding goes towards programs that provide
rehabilitative, preventative, outreach and other service related care.
Initial efforts by the City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County were largely
ineffective from an organizational standpoint (LA Times Editorial Board 2017). Likewise,
responsibilities and roles between the two organizations were in question. The lack of a unified,
coordinated response jeopardized its success. Litigation over jurisdictional responsibility was
settled in part with the creation of a joint agency, the Los Angles Homeless Service Agency (LA
Times Editorial Board 2017).
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While LAHSA has certainly provided crucial resources and hundreds of millions of
dollars in funding towards homeless services, it has been largely ineffective in reducing the
overall number of homeless individuals. In 2017 more than 800 homeless people died on the
streets of Los Angeles (LA Times Editorial Board 2017). After years of growing skepticism and
public outcry, county and city legislators have come together to address the issue, the foundation
of which is a tremendous increase in funding for homeless initiatives.
Response Effort
Predictive modeling.
With the use of innovative software and predictive analytics, researchers in Santa Clara
County, California studied the homeless population at differing stages, and studied correlations
pertaining to demographics, clinical utilization, and other predictive data from 38 government
agencies (Toros 2018). Findings in the study provided administrators to single out short term,
high cost users within the healthcare system, in contrast to those individuals with ongoing costs,
typically experiencing homelessness on a chronic level. Utilization of the wealth of information
at public administrator’s disposal through predictive modeling is an effective way to conduct
research with potentially actionable findings.
Despite the promising functionality of this type of research, certain limitations were
noted. Primarily that, despite the effectiveness in singling out infrequent high cost users, the
circumstances of many demographics are complicated, and more advanced modeling would be
needed to draw further conclusions about its broadness in pragmatic application (Toros 2018).
As technology continues to expand the capability of data collection, the ability to utilize and
apply this data becomes an increasingly important field.
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Theoretical Frameworks
Collaborative governance and the advocacy dilemma.
Changes in the administering of social services, and a propensity for increased reliance
on government funding to cover rising costs in outsourced services have created a change in the
way local governments interact with non-profit groups through advocacy (Mosely 2012).
Traditionally, scholarly viewed government spending as a prohibitory to advocacy involvement.
More recent findings suggest the opposite is true. Furthermore, advocacy is often encouraged in
the securing and building of relationships between service providers and governments. “For
organizations dependent on government funding streams, like homeless service nonprofits,
advocacy is a key way to increase leverage and gain control over their environment” (Mosely
2012 p.845). This increased dependence on advocacy towards the securing of funding is not
without its limitations. Researchers have noted that an increased advocacy work that is centered
around financial relationship building, can be detrimental to the amount of devotion and
incentive service providers and other partnering organizations provide to their clients, and
playing an educational role towards the public.
A tendency towards “being an insider” is driven by the belief of service providers that
they need to achieve policy makers acceptance through legitimacy of adherence to widely help
administrative norms (Dimagio and Powel 1983). The concern of operating under an increased
attention to inter-organizational interests, may lead to a decrease in the ability to address the
systemic changes originally being sought. An adherence to norms for the benefit of political
approval may not create the type of dynamic environment necessary for deeper systemic change.
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Punctuated equilibrium theory.
Understanding the historical problems with a response to homelessness can be viewed
through the lens of punctuated equilibrium theory. The argument within this framework is that
creating significant policy change is often difficult when the establishment of numerous public
agency administrations and other unified state actors have a “disincentive for change” (Sosin
2010 p.543). The opportunity for significant change is, however, possible during the proper
alignment of political interests. The authors of the framework, Jones and Baumgartner, have
formulated the theory that policy change will largely occur only during profound periods of
abrupt innovation, followed by long periods of political stability and an environment not
conducive to intense policy change.
Modern literature accepts the norm for change in the policy making arena as largely
incremental. Through Peirson’s generalized theory of path dependence, organizations and the
administrators that populate them, benefit from the incremental returns on their incremental
accomplishments (Pierson 2000).
As pervasive an issue as homelessness has been in public administration, the conditions
for radical policy change, as well as perception by administrators, politicians and the public, are
a rare occurrence.
The current state of homelessness in Los Angeles County is at the crisis level, and
continues to draw criticism and ire from the general public, and many of the politicians who
represent them. The current efforts of the City of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Homeless
Services Authority, in conjunction with the significant investment in voter approved funding
have created the conditions for meaningful policy change to occur.
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Despite pushback from some segments of the community, stemming from the ‘not in my
backyard,’ or ‘NIMBY’ attitude associated with resisting physical change in the built
environment surrounding communities, the opportunity for lasting homelessness policy change is
still strong.
The rare occurrence for non-incremental change are most often a result of pressure
applied to politicians. The punctuated equilibrium theory explains how sudden changes in public
perception and media coverage, simultaneously build the case for politicians to act. Similarly,
according to Jensen, Pierson’s earlier literature on punctuated equilibrium centers around the
foundations of politicians’ actions to be centered around the issues that will help them be re-
elected (Jensen 2009). “This means that if an issue grabs the attention of the public and/or
media, politicians are likely to turn their attention to the issue in order to solve it” (Jensen 2009
p.5). The current political climate has been altered by increased media coverage of homelessness
and the growing public perception of homelessness as a pervasive issue.
As explained through punctuated equilibrium theory, the climate is conducive for change,
and the window of opportunity has been opened. Voter approved measures and public unrest are
giving public administrators reason to move quickly on the issue. Doing so requires the
willingness and ability to adapt to the heightened environment and apply recent research and
advancements in the treatment of homelessness as a systemic issue, not an individualized one.
Research Gap
Creating a successful program of care, with a focus on housing, as well as prevention, is
dependent on the deep understanding of the client, and of how collaborative systems are best
designed to effectively reach them. Furthermore, determining and delegating responsibility for
the best implementation approaches for specific demographics requires further study.
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Adequate studies have not been conducted to fully understand this trend, ideas have been
put forth to make sure this important demographic is not gone underrepresented. These include
higher interaction with schools, and through low cost, non-invasive questioning about their
experiences. Specifically, gathering data from the homeless population directly would provide
valuable insight from a perspective that has, while being central to the problem, gone largely
undocumented.
Summary
As homelessness has risen in recent years, so too has the level of publicity surrounding it,
as well as the public’s growing perception of homelessness as a pervasive societal problem. The
increases in providing services that treat the symptoms of homelessness, rather than treat the root
cause, have created a high financial burden and ethical dilemma on the public. As a result,
political pressure has made possible extensive legislation through voter approved tax and bond
measures to generate revenue specific to providing services to treat and alleviate homelessness.
Along with the funding measures, a system of coordinated entry has been developed to
reduce systemic causes of homelessness, as they occur in different demographics, and at
different stages. Though the strategic planning has been extensive, utilizing the voices of
homeless people who are the direct users of the system being implemented could provide critical
information about its effectiveness.
Gathering data from their perspective may provide valuable insight to alleviating
systemic causes of chronic homelessness, and bridging the gap between current strategic efforts,
and the most effective initiatives of the future.
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Research Question and Aim
How can the strategic planning designed around reducing homelessness in Los Angeles
County be better understood and improved through gaining input from the homeless population,
the core users of the strategies being implemented?
The aim of the research is to better understand how to communicate and apply the
benefits of homelessness relief strategies to the general public, with the goals of maintaining
political support and gaining cooperation. The purpose will be to describe the current climate in
public administration, politics and the general consensus of the public towards treating the
homelessness epidemic.
This project will contribute to the strategic planning efforts and implementation of their
derived initiatives impacts on reducing the number of people experiencing homelessness, and by
gathering ethnographic qualitative data of the perceived impact on the homeless population.
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Research Design
Approach
The approach to the research proposal will a mixed methods approach, containing
analysis of qualitative data collected during the researcher’s ethnographic study including
participant observation and interviews, as well as qualitative data derived from the Greater Los
Angeles Homeless Count, as conducted by LAHSA. Comprehensive analysis of the complex
network of homelessness initiatives is wide reaching and requires a high-level view of the
interconnected agencies working in union. The study will be both exploratory and descriptive in
nature.
Design
The research proposal will be based on an ethnography to take the broad field of
homelessness response and narrow its scope to gaining the input and consensus of differing
demographics that make up the greater homeless population, in conjunction with a quantitative
analysis of numerical data collected through the Los Angeles Homeless Count, conducted on an
annual basis.
Timeline.
Collecting data over time is essential to create a narrative of the homelessness initiatives
as they continually evolve and are implemented over the coming years. Taking measure of
progress, through successes and failures of these initiatives will be done through analysis of data
collected by an ongoing ethnographic research project, designed to collect empirical
representation of the effects of the homelessness reduction strategies currently being
implemented.
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Methodology.
The primary research will be done through an ethnography, in which the researcher will
experience an immersive understanding of the lives of people experiencing homelessness. The
longitudinal qualities of ethnographic research make it an ideal method to observe changes over
time (Sangasubana 2011). Also valuable to this methodology is the ability to understand the
marginalized population of homeless individuals from an insider’s perspective.
Data collection.
Three modes of data collection have been identified within an ethnography (Angrosino
2007). These include observation, interviewing, and archival research.
Through the observatory portion of the ethnography, the researcher will immerse
themselves into the everyday lives of the subjects, while maintaining an understanding of
professionality. In essence the researcher will begin to understand the lives of the homeless
people they are studying, through ongoing daily observation of their activities and interactions
with the user level aspects of homelessness initiatives. This can include many forms of
interaction, leading to the researcher’s advancement in perception of efficacy, usability and
attitudes towards initiatives being implemented.
The interviewing portion of the ethnography will be a largely informal, conversational
approach to elicit responses from research subjects. The unique immersive approach to
ethnographic research prohibits the structured use of questionnaires and surveys, but instead
takes into account the researcher’s intuitive response to best garner the trust and comfort level of
an often-sensitive subject group, thus soliciting a more honest and tailored response to the
researcher’s areas of interest.
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Gaining an understanding of the unique accounts of individuals within the ethnographer’s
domain will provide empirical data which points researchers to shed light on the missing voice in
existing research. The voice of the homeless individual themselves becomes a primary source
of information leading to understand the systemic causes of homelessness, and the failures of
past alleviation efforts of public administrators. Some of the missing links between existing
policy and the untreated needs of the subject population can be illuminated through this
immersive research methodology.
The archival research portion of the study will include the retrieval and analysis of a
variety of sources of published data pertaining to the homeless population being studied. These
will include analysis of several publications of data from the Los Angeles County Homeless
Initiative and the Comprehensive homeless Strategy published by the City of Los Angeles, as
well as documents published through the joint city and county agency, LAHSA. The
collaborative approach of these organizations bridges the strategic efforts and services provided
by both city and county public administrators.
Obtaining information from the Coordinated Entry System will be critical to
understanding the current strategies plan to identify unique homeless groups and determine the
most effective method of entering individuals into a continuum of care and creating a traceable
timeline.
Determining demographic information will be consequential in the ethnographer’s
selection of subjects to study, by geographic region, age, and other circumstantial conditions
creating pockets of people experiencing homelessness on differing levels, and for differing
reasons.
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Quantitative data from the annual point in time count will be imperative to the analysis of
the ongoing effectiveness of the homelessness strategy, as it provides a baseline number of
people experiencing homelessness in specific locations throughout each city in Los Angles
County.
Analysis.
Data collected through the ethnography will be extensive in volume and varied in
response and format. As such, the researcher will have the task of following the following
process of data analysis, as set forth by Roper & Shapira. Coding their collected data to provide
organization through meaningful categorization. This will be a process of determining
categories meaningful to the researcher’s objective of eliciting opinions and beliefs of their
subjects towards the efficacy, usefulness, and shortcomings of the homelessness strategies being
implemented at their level.
After coding, a process of sorting through data to determine any emerging patters, themes
will take place with the goal of identifying potential findings from the data.
Identifying any potential outliers collected in the data is an important step of the analysis,
as it gives the researcher cues to any areas which may requires additional research, or more in
depth- analysis.
Following is the administering of thematic patterns towards applied theories. Existing
research and documentation from the City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County will be
carefully reviewed to look for situations where data provides further insight in support of, or
opposition to, the strategies which have been developed, the initiatives currently being
implemented, and those in the process of development.
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Discussion
Implications of Research
Having a comprehensive understanding of the success of the homelessness initiatives
being implemented throughout Los Angeles County is significant and beneficial to the
advancement of research in the field of public administration and homelessness reduction, in
several ways. It increases the empirical knowledge base from the viewpoint of those
experiencing homelessness in the system, a point of view which has gone largely undocumented.
This ethnographic approach will help researchers gain insight to a user level understanding of the
direct consequences of current implementation happening within the system.
Limitations
Conducting an ethnography induces several possible limitations. The process can be both
time consuming and labor intensive. (Singleton & Straits, 2005). Attempting to live alongside
the daily life homeless persons requires an immense commitment of the researcher’s personal
and professional life. The study will be lengthy and at times may be taxing, on both an
emotional and physical level. The benefits of such in depth study need to be at the forefront of
the researcher’s mind, in order to cope with the possibility of harsh and uncomfortable
conditions.
This is not to say the researcher should ever jeopardize his or her sense of safety. Prior to
the studies commencement, the researcher will undergo thorough research and training of best
practices surrounding safety, as documented and instructed by experienced street level social and
behavioral workers, mental health professionals and first responders. The researcher will not
undertake study in geographic locations or specific situations deemed to be unsafe, or where the
researcher feels their safety and security is in jeopardy.
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Public Literacy
Advancing the strategic planning that has been conducted by the City of Los Angeles and
Los Angeles Country is contingent on the continued support of the public. There has been a
paradox in the way the public has shown both support and opposition to solving the crisis of
homelessness. The passage of Proposition HHH and Measure H were voter approved mandates
which evidenced strong support for raising funds to alleviate the effects of homeless, by
increasing services and permanent supportive housing. There has simultaneously been a
NIMBY mentality which creates roadblocks to the advancement of planning specific to
incorporating supportive housing for the homeless into existing Los Angeles neighborhoods.
The concept of assimilating the homeless into neighborhoods has been met with protest of local
residents who have fears about the safety and cleanliness that might result from such
assimilation.
Budgetary Consequences
Ethnographic research requires a substantial commitment of time and personal
investment of immersion, attention to detail and can have emotional repercussions on the
researcher. Such investment, however, is only required by a minimum of one individual, and
thus has a low fiscal impact on the organization funding the study (Sangasubana 2011). The low
overhead and potential for a high yield of in unique, in-depth empirical data, make the
ethnography more feasible for organizations to implement over a long period of time.
Ethical Considerations
Studying the homeless population carries responsibility with ethical concerns. As a
sensitive group, people experiencing homelessness require researchers to take into account the
physical, mental and emotional wellbeing and safety of their subjects. It is also necessary to
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handle the subject population with sensitivity towards their living situation, conditions and sense
of pride.
The researcher will first need approval from their university’s institutional review board,
comprised of designated research program faculty and staff. Additionally, the researcher’s
planning must meet strict criteria set forth by Federal regulations. Under the Department of
Health and Human Services, the Human Subjects Committee will review the research to ensure
ethical and legal compatibility.
As part of undergoing the comprehensive safety training prior to conducting the
ethnography, the researcher will seek guidance and training form experienced field workers and
other service providers who have an extensive understanding of the ethical foundations of
working with homeless populations. In addition, the researcher will have on call contacts for
dealing with any challenging situations which may arise.
24
Conclusion
The implementation of homelessness initiatives by Los Angeles County, the City of
Los Angeles and their cooperating partners will gain valuable insight from empirical and
ethnographic findings of the core needs of the homeless population, as defined by the
experiences and needs of the coordinated entry systems core users.
These are the needs of the chronically homeless themselves, separated into veterans
experiencing homeless, mentally ill individuals experiencing homelessness, misplaced and
displaced low-income individuals experiencing homelessness, young people experiencing
homelessness through a combination of misfortune, poverty and a lack of job security and
affordable housing options.
A new day in the light of the renewed efforts by the City of Los Angeles, the County of
Los Angeles and their cooperating partnerships, along with a renewed financial and political
consensus for the need to address the current state of crisis surrounding Los Angeles
communities experiencing homelessness has created a window of opportunity to tackle the
critical problem at systemic level.
Many regional neighborhoods experience the effects of homelessness on a visual and
emotional level based on their sense of public safety and neighborhood aesthetics. Based on
the overwhelming voter approved homelessness centered Measure H and Prop HHH provide
evidence of the public’s desire not only to alleviate neighborhood degradation based on the
effects of homelessness, but to provide relief for those directly affected by homelessness. The
empathetic and sympathetic response of the public justifies public administrator’s bold and
thorough application of homelessness reduction strategies. The passing of these measures
provides a directive and mandate to use tax payer dollars in creating a system of coordinated
25
response to homelessness, and to providing both temporary and long-term housing to those
most in need. Also significant in these measures is the need and responsibility of local
government to provide the intrinsic mental and physical treatment for the underlying causes of
homelessness within the affected communities.
To ensure current public administrators are achieving a pragmatic and systemic solution
to these egregious problems, research centered around the experiences, attitudes and belief of the
homeless populations themselves will provide first rate empirical data and analysis.
26
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29
Appendix A: Annotated Bibliography
Jones, M. (2015). Creating a Science of Homelessness During the Reagan Era. The Milbank Quarterly, 93(1), 139-178. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/24369873
• Research Question: What is the impact of political environment on social and behavioral science research on homelessness?
• Research Method: Qualitative • Contribution: The attitudes and policies of the Reagan administration
emphasized individual and cultural aspects of poverty, failing to understand and address the structural, systemic causes.
• Category: Identifying Causes • Examines the occurrence of mental health issues in the homeless population • Case study of retrospective of federally funded research • Looks at how politics can influence social and behavioral science.
Moulton, S. (2013). Does Increased Funding for Homeless Programs Reduce Chronic Homelessness? Southern Economic Journal, 79(3), 600-620. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/23809686
• Research Question: Does Increased Funding for Homeless Programs Reduce Chronic Homelessness?
• Research method: Quantitative • Contribution: Increased funding, homeless housing projects and services
reduces the rate of chronic homelessness. • Category: Funding • Analyzes data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to look
at the effect of housing programs on homelessness • Focuses on chronic homelessness, housing programs • Cost effectiveness of providing housing, services
Ku, B., Scott, K., Kertesz, S., & Pitts, S. (2010). Factors Associated with Use of Urban Emergency Departments by the U.S. Homeless Population. Public Health Reports (1974-), 125(3), 398-405. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/41435213
• Research Question: • Research Methods: Descriptive, cross sectional secondary analysis. • Contribution: ER visits by homeless individuals was found to be higher, and more
frequent, and indicates a need for policy change. • Category: Costs to Society • Financial argument...most homeless lack insurance, and often have psychiatric
and substance abuse conditions. Agranoff, R. (1991). Human Services Integration: Past and Present Challenges in Public Administration. Public Administration Review, 51(6), 533-542. doi:10.2307/976604
30
• Research Question:How can cities better adapt to the movement towards Services Integration?
• Research Methods: Descriptive • Contribution: Identifies the challenges that services integration presents to public
administrators. • Category: Framework, Service Integration
Mosley, J. (2012). Keeping the Lights On: How Government Funding Concerns Drive the Advocacy Agendas of Nonprofit Homeless Service Providers. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory: J-PART, 22(4), 841-866. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/23321344
• Research Question: What is the relationship between government funding and advocacy participation, goals, and tactics.
• Research Methods: Qualitative investigation of advocacy involvement. • Contribution: Growth in government contracts for social services has resulted in
human service nonprofits becoming increasingly dependent on those government funds to carry out
• Category: Funding, Collaborative governance, Advocacy Toros, H., & Flaming, D. (2018). Prioritizing Homeless Assistance Using Predictive Algorithms: An Evidence-Based Approach. Cityscape, 20(1), 117-146. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/26381224
• Research Question: Can a predictive model be used to identify high cost users with the homeless population?
• Research Methods: Mixed Methods • Contribution: Created a predictive model to identify homeless people most likely
to incur high public service costs. • Category: Costs to Society, Predictive Modeling
Glendening, Z., & Shinn, M. (2017). Risk Models for Returns to Housing Instability Among Families Experiencing Homelessness. Cityscape, 19(3), 309-330. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/26328369
• Research Question: Can observable family features explain why some families return to housing instability after exiting emergency shelter?
• Research Methods: Mixed Model, Explanatory • Contribution: Shed light on the types of predictive indicators that can be used in
determining the risk of housing instability among homeless families. Policy recommendations
• Category: Predictive Modeling Waddock, S., & Post, J. (1991). Social Entrepreneurs and Catalytic Change. Public Administration Review, 51(5), 393-401. doi:10.2307/976408
• Research Question: • Research Methods: • Contribution: Assessing the roles of Social Entrepreneurs on creating catalytic
policy changes in the public sector.
31
• Category: Sosin, M., Smith, S., Hilton, T., & Jordan, L. (2010). Temporary Crises and Priority Changes: The Case of State Substance Abuse Systems. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory: J-PART, 20(3), 539-575. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/40732526
• Research Question: What is social entrepreneurship, and what is its role in the public domain?
• Research Methods: Descriptive • Contribution: Identified state level crisis management challenges and shed light
on the disillusionment with state vs federal control of program management. • Category: Punctuated equilibrium theory, Causes, Service Integration
Valero, J., & Jang, H. (2016). The Role of Nonprofit Organizations in Homeless Policy Networks: A Research Note. Cityscape, 18(2), 151-162. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/26328260
• Research Question: To what degree do nonprofit organizations able to take a leadership role in human service networks.
• Research Methods: • Contribution: Non-profit organizations are significant players in implementing
federal homeless policy. • Category: Collaborative networks, Leadership
Perlman, S., Willard, J., Herbers, J., Cutuli, J., & Eyrich Garg, K. (2014). Youth Homelessness: Prevalence and Mental Health Correlates. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research,5(3), 361-377. doi:10.1086/677757
• Research Question: How can the Youth Risk Behavior Survey be used to understand the prevalence of youth homelessness, characteristics of homeless experiences, and how these experiences relate to mental health problems among youth.
• Research Methods: Mixed Methods • Contribution: The YRBS estimate underscores the reality that youth experiencing
homelessness are unlikely to be located through traditional means of counting. Youth homelessness needs to be treated differently and more data needs to be gathered to paint an accurate picture.
• Category: Causes, Mental Health
Jensen, C. (2009). Policy Punctuations in Mature Welfare States. Journal of Public Policy, 29(3), 287-303. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.csun.edu/stable/40542351
• Research Question: How does the incremental nature of punctuated equilibrium framework, affect the welfare state through abrupt yet short periods of friction that lead to change.
• Research Methods: Descriptive • Contribution: • Category: Theory: Punctuated Equilibrium