A study exploring friendship relations of homeless, male drug users (aged between 21 and 50 years) through 27 in-depth interviews in Atlanta (Georgia) found that subjects were engaged in friendship networks that offered social support and that there was a relationship between friendships and patterns of crack cocaine use. (JB)

Studies characteristics of 29 pregnant homeless women (18 African Americans, 6 whites, and 5 others). In general, respondents are young, unmarried minority group members with no income other than entitlements, who have been without a home one year or less. These women have more health problems than the average population. (SLD)

Reviews policies that address substance abuse among the homeless. Recommends that the changing needs of the homeless require an integration of alcoholism and drug abuse recovery services with programs for various groups, substance-free housing, and psychological knowledge incorporated into programs for those struggling with addiction and…

Reviews recent research on the epidemiology, subject characteristics, and service needs of the homeless population who are dually diagnosed to suffer both severe mental illness and substance abuse disorders. Discusses evolving approaches to providing social services, various treatments, system and legal issues, and problems with current research.…

This study compares social relationships of 677 homeless mothers with 495 housed mothers on public assistance in New York (New York). Homeless women had more disruptive social experiences but were more likely to have had recent contact with relatives/friends. Over 75 percent had visited relatives/friends in the past year. (JB)

Policymakers must identify the numbers of homeless children and youth, and acknowledge the barriers that impede the education of such children. Recommendations are made for policy at the federal, state, and local levels. Interagency collaboration among health care providers, private advocacy groups, and human resources agencies is also…

Compares attitudes toward the homeless in Japan and the United States through a survey of 268 Japanese and 254 U.S. adults and adolescents interviewed in public places. In Japan, homelessness is seldom discussed, and poverty, which may be as widespread as in the United States, is often not recognized. (SLD)

This case study of 72 homeless families and their 78 children in day care at a large welfare hotel in New York City evaluates the children's health status, separation and attachment, sleep patterns, eating patterns, emotional status, attention span, gross motor development, speech and language development, and cognitive development. (JDD)

The six articles of this special section address the organizational context that shapes utilization of mental health services, the relevance of data elements and results to decision making, and assuring the validity of evaluation results. Theoretical and practical concerns are considered. (SLD)

Depicts a service learning program that focuses on homelessness and housing in which the students work in an urban neighborhood (Yonkers, New York) for a week as a means for developing the students' understanding of urban politics. Believes that this program may encourage students to integrate community development work into their professional…

Statewide study of 455 Ohio children who received family preservation or reunification services found that the homeless child was more likely to be a child of color, to be younger, to have problems maintaining a bond with parents, and to be in a relative's home, and less likely to have behavior problems or successful service outcomes. Contains 22…

This study investigated the health-related concerns of adolescents living on streets as compared to poor and privileged adolescents living with their families in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The different groups of respondents were similar in terms of individuals' fear of disease and lack of concern about health in old age. AIDS and cancer were feared by…

Home-Start is an international organization in which volunteers offer regular support, friendship, and practical help to young families under stress in their own homes in order to prevent family crisis and breakdown. It is available to any family with at least one child under 5 years of age. This book presents a snapshot of the day-to-day…

This book provides strategies for dealing with negative patron behavior in the library and presents guidelines for identifying and effectively responding to, as well as preventing a variety of behavior problems. Fifteen librarians wrote the thirteen chapters, which are divided into three sections. Part 1 deals with patrons who pose the most…

Roughly 600,000 families are homeless today in America, while over 2.7 million children are in foster care or out-of-home placements. Few policymakers have examined these issues together, or understood that they are interrelated and must be addressed jointly to break the cycle of family disintegration, violence, and poverty. A recent survey by the…