The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression Analyses

Objective: To identify determinants that contribute to the length of homeless shelter stay.Methods: We utilized a unique dataset from the Homeless Management Information Systems from Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which contains 44,197 shelter stays for 17,070 adults between Jan. 2014 and May...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Haijing Hao, Monica Garfield, Sandeep Purao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2022-01-01
Series:International Journal of Public Health
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.ssph-journal.org/articles/10.3389/ijph.2021.1604273/full
_version_ 1818954091000233984
author Haijing Hao
Monica Garfield
Sandeep Purao
author_facet Haijing Hao
Monica Garfield
Sandeep Purao
author_sort Haijing Hao
collection DOAJ
description Objective: To identify determinants that contribute to the length of homeless shelter stay.Methods: We utilized a unique dataset from the Homeless Management Information Systems from Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which contains 44,197 shelter stays for 17,070 adults between Jan. 2014 and May 2018.Results: Our statistical analyses and regression model analyses show that factors that contribute to the length of a homeless shelter stay include being female, senior, disability, being Hispanic, or being Asian or Black African. A significant fraction of homeless shelter stays (76%) are experienced by individuals with at least one of three disabilities: physical disability, mental health issues, or substance use disorder. Recidivism also contributes to longer homeless shelter stays.Conclusion: The results suggest possible program and policy implications. Several factors that contribute to longer homeless shelter stay, such as gender, age, disability, race, and ethnicity, may have funding implications. Age may point to the need for early interventions. Disability is developmental and may benefit from treatment and intervention. Finally, we find that length of stay and recidivism are not independent, and may form a vicious cycle that requires additional investigation.
first_indexed 2024-12-20T10:16:39Z
format Article
id doaj.art-2fcc8e3b254d47ee9ad51a26dc5eb6f4
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 1661-8564
language English
last_indexed 2024-12-20T10:16:39Z
publishDate 2022-01-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series International Journal of Public Health
spelling doaj.art-2fcc8e3b254d47ee9ad51a26dc5eb6f42022-12-21T19:44:03ZengFrontiers Media S.A.International Journal of Public Health1661-85642022-01-016610.3389/ijph.2021.16042731604273The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression AnalysesHaijing Hao0Monica Garfield1Sandeep Purao2Department of Computer Information Systems, Bentley University, Waltham, MA, United StatesDepartment of Computer Information Systems, Bentley University, Waltham, MA, United StatesDepartment of Information and Process Management, Bentley University, Waltham, MA, United StatesObjective: To identify determinants that contribute to the length of homeless shelter stay.Methods: We utilized a unique dataset from the Homeless Management Information Systems from Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which contains 44,197 shelter stays for 17,070 adults between Jan. 2014 and May 2018.Results: Our statistical analyses and regression model analyses show that factors that contribute to the length of a homeless shelter stay include being female, senior, disability, being Hispanic, or being Asian or Black African. A significant fraction of homeless shelter stays (76%) are experienced by individuals with at least one of three disabilities: physical disability, mental health issues, or substance use disorder. Recidivism also contributes to longer homeless shelter stays.Conclusion: The results suggest possible program and policy implications. Several factors that contribute to longer homeless shelter stay, such as gender, age, disability, race, and ethnicity, may have funding implications. Age may point to the need for early interventions. Disability is developmental and may benefit from treatment and intervention. Finally, we find that length of stay and recidivism are not independent, and may form a vicious cycle that requires additional investigation.https://www.ssph-journal.org/articles/10.3389/ijph.2021.1604273/fulldisabilityhomeless shelterlength of stayHMISregression
spellingShingle Haijing Hao
Monica Garfield
Sandeep Purao
The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression Analyses
International Journal of Public Health
disability
homeless shelter
length of stay
HMIS
regression
title The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression Analyses
title_full The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression Analyses
title_fullStr The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression Analyses
title_full_unstemmed The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression Analyses
title_short The Determinants of Length of Homeless Shelter Stays: Evidence-Based Regression Analyses
title_sort determinants of length of homeless shelter stays evidence based regression analyses
topic disability
homeless shelter
length of stay
HMIS
regression
url https://www.ssph-journal.org/articles/10.3389/ijph.2021.1604273/full
work_keys_str_mv AT haijinghao thedeterminantsoflengthofhomelessshelterstaysevidencebasedregressionanalyses
AT monicagarfield thedeterminantsoflengthofhomelessshelterstaysevidencebasedregressionanalyses
AT sandeeppurao thedeterminantsoflengthofhomelessshelterstaysevidencebasedregressionanalyses
AT haijinghao determinantsoflengthofhomelessshelterstaysevidencebasedregressionanalyses
AT monicagarfield determinantsoflengthofhomelessshelterstaysevidencebasedregressionanalyses
AT sandeeppurao determinantsoflengthofhomelessshelterstaysevidencebasedregressionanalyses