Targeting Only the Prime Downtrodden: A Paradox of Seeking Only the Vulnerable but Housing Ready Homeless

• In Event: 189 - Section on Community and Urban Sociology Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 05. Homelessness and Housing Insecurity

Abstract

Using a theoretical background from Snow et al.’s (1986) Frame Alignment Processes and Lipsky’s (1980) Street-Level Bureaucracy, this paper considers varying frameworks of perspective and implementation of policy, with regards to social service workers who work with homeless individuals. The paper describes how social service workers understand the social identities and service needs of the homeless populations they serve; how they perceive the policies of the agencies in which they are employed; and how they navigate the potential conflicts among these perspectives. Specifically, this paper addresses how social service workers face conflicting mandates of proving that their homeless clients are vulnerable via the Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool (SPDAT) while simultaneously advocating housing readiness in order to house their homeless clients. This paper describes frame alignment among street-level bureaucrats regarding their discretionary power in the following ways: 1) Street-level outreach workers face an official structure for service-worthy clients based on vulnerability; 2) However, they play an active role in defining who fits in policy and procedure mandates by fitting clients into the system as it exists. Additionally, they are often aware of who really gets left out of the system.

Authors

• Curtis Smith, Utah State University

• Leon Anderson, Utah State University