Housing and Child Well Being: Implications for Research, Policy, and Practice. Issue 1 (9th August 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Fowler, Patrick J.; Farrell, Anne F.
• Is Part Of: American journal of community psychology. Volume 60:Issue 1/2(2017)
• Page Start: 3
• Page End: 8
• Publication Date: 2017-08-09
• Subjects: Housing -- Child well being -- Homelessness -- Child welfare -- Foster care; Community psychology -- Periodicals; Community mental health services -- Periodicals; Community psychiatry -- Periodicals; Community Mental Health Services -- Periodicals; Community Psychiatry -- Periodicals; 155.905
• DOI: 10.1002/ajcp.12154
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0091-0562

Abstract

Highlights: Inadequate housing and homelessness threaten family stability and child development. A growing body of research links inadequate housing and homelessness with the child welfare system. At‐risk youth and families interact with various service systems, which are rarely coordinated. These 13 papers inform coordinated responses to inadequate housing in the child welfare system. Abstract: Inadequate housing and homelessness represent significant barriers to family stability and child development. An accumulating body of evidence documents the relatively high risk of family separation among families experiencing housing instability and homelessness, the extent of housing problems experienced by families involved in the child welfare system, and the disproportionately high rates of homelessness among youth aging out of foster care. Vulnerable youth and families interact frequently with various social service programs intended to mitigate multifaceted and multilevel risks, however, systems efforts and resources are rarely coordinated and results to date are mixed. We introduce 13 papers that are part of a burgeoning, increasingly sophisticated body of scholarship that inform coordinated responses to inadequate housing experienced by families involved in child welfare and related interventions. We note emergent themes and state a pressing need for research that accounts for ecological and contextual influences, examines the differential impact of housing and service interventions, identifies critical ingredients of effective housing and service interventions, and positions for scale‐up. We distill findings into a set of observations and recommendations that align with best intentions to improve quality of life and promote well being among some of society's most vulnerable individuals.