Introduction: Homelessness is a complex and systemic problem within the United States, made more complicated by distributing federal funding to address this crucial issue. Regional Continuums of Care (CoC) is the primary method of designating organizational units by geography responsible for addressing homelessness within a given area. The primary duties of each CoC are to oversee the operation for the designated region, to maintain the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), and plan for the CoC. The size and scope of CoCs can vary within some states, indicating larger or smaller groups of counties responsible for addressing homelessness in a given area. However, some states have entities known as Balance of the State (BoS) CoCs, which cover large geographic areas. The extent to which the smaller CoC model or the larger BoS model is associated with the overall effectiveness of addressing homelessness within a given state has not been examined and is the focus of this study.
Methods: A cross-sectional study examining CoC structure and homelessness was used for this project. Per capita rates of homelessness were the primary outcome variable of interest. Per capita homeless was derived from general population numbers reported by the US Census Bureau in 2022 by PIT count per state as reported by HUD in the same year. States organizational structure as defined by the number of CoCs in a state was the independent variable of interest. To examine this potential relationship further, as well as the impact of other known factors that impact homelessness, an OLS regression was performed.
Results: Overall, the number of CoCs ranged from 1 to 44. Overall the OLS regression model including three variables (CoC, state geographic location, and rurality) was statistically significant, F(6, 43)=4.406, p
Conclusion: The initial examination of the relationship between homelessness per capita and the number of CoCs in a state suggests that other elements to account for effectiveness of CoC within a community setting need to be considered. Further explorations such as policy implications, weather patterns, and funding may need to be considered in seeing a reduction of homelessness per capita.
A more comprehensive analysis of the relationship between states with exclusively CoCs and those BoS occupying large geographic areas indicates a need for standardization of data collection, distribution of federal funding, and culturally competent strategic planning for the reduction of homelessness.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ETSU/oai:dc.etsu.edu:asrf-2192 |
| Date | 25 April 2023 |
| Creators | Frye-Clark, Opal |
| Publisher | Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University |
| Source Sets | East Tennessee State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Source | Appalachian Student Research Forum |
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