All Research Logs

Research Log #1 - Solutionary Project 2020

Name: Caitlin Idica
Date: 4 February 2020
Essential Question: What factors contribute to the homeless problem in the United States
and in the state of Hawaii?
Three Points to Prove:

#1: Homelessness is the result of combined risk factors influenced by socio-economic
structure, social forces and an individual’s environmental circumstances.
#2: It is difficult to collectively understand and define who makes up the homeless population.
#3: Due to how difficult it is to define homelessness, establishing policies in order to manage
this social issue is challenging.
Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

Mago introduces this issue as follows: “Homelessness is difficult to define, thus governments
struggle with uncertainty when creating and implementing policies they hope will effectively
manage or eradicate this problem.”
Elaborating on previous claims, the author states that “homelessness is a complex social
problem with a variety of underlying economic and social factors such as poverty, lack of
affordable housing, uncertain physical and mental health, addictions, and community and
family breakdown.”
(cont. from previous quote)

Factors influencing homelessness can be quite difficult to understand as “these factors, in
varying combinations, contribute to duration, frequency, and type of homelessness.”
“To be fully homeless is to live without shelter; however, many experience partial
homelessness that can include uncertain, temporary, or sub-standard shelter,” Mago
explains.
Reflect, Respond, Comment, Analyze, Connect to Your Thesis (How does this source
support the Point to Prove?):
This website provides insight into why it is difficult to establish the proper policies to aid in the
nation’s homelessness problem. It is evident that homelessness is an amalgamation of risk
factors that vary from socio-economic structure to environmental. It is a complex problem that
requires a holistic approach in order to resolve. These risk factors, such as poverty, lack of
housing, addiction, and other factors may affect each homeless individual differently. One
person experiencing homelessness is potentially experiencing specific or combined risk
factors that may drastically differ from another homeless individual. This adds a layer of
complexity when trying to understand an effective way to solve such a complex problem.
As mentioned in this peer-reviewed article, factors that affect homelessness are situational,
depending on duration, frequency and type. A lot of the homeless population often come in
and out of homelessness. As states conduct monthly or yearly counts, the numbers that are
used to measure the homeless population is not very accurate. This article also explains
different socio-economic factors affecting homelessness. Economic risk factors such as
poverty and lack of affordable houses are well accepted as primary reasons for
homelessness. Social risk factors such as family fallouts, mental health and addiction can
contribute to how a person decides to take care of themselves. This social, psychological,
and economic impact (rather a biopsychosocial approach) on homelessness is something
that must be considered when creating successful and long-lasting policies.
Homelessness is a further complicated by the fact that government or state officials may not
consider every situation in which a person may be considered homeless. The concept of
hidden homelessness, which I will further explore in another research log, is a great example
of how government and state officials do not take into account many individuals and families
that make up the “hidden homeless” population. It is crucial to account for all, not just some,
homeless individuals, there is no way to efficiently and effectively solve homelessness in the
state of Hawai’i or in the United States.
Work Cited (correct MLA format):
Mago, Vijay K., et al. “Analyzing the Impact of Social Factors on Homelessness: A Fuzzy
Cognitive Map Approach.” BMC Medical Informatics & Decision Making, vol. 13, no.1,
Sept. 2013, pp. 1-19. EBSCOhost, doi: 10.1186/1472-6947-13-94. 5 February 2020.
This is a reputable and reliable source because it was found on Ebsco as an academic article
or scholarly article (meaning that it is peer-reviewed). This source is meets high standards
and is trustworthy.

Name: Caitlin Idica



In his article written in 2016, Nagourney describes that Hawaii officials being allowed to, “tell
people to stop sitting on sidewalks, and to seize belongings that are illegally piled on public
land.”
Nagourney elaborates that, “while homeless people have largely vanished from the areas that
were the focus of the crackdown, many have just gone elsewhere, into the dense greenery up
Diamond Head Road, to out-of-the-way alleys and remote corners of public parks.”
Upon interview, “homeless men and women displayed a mastery of the intricacies of state
and city laws, of how some sidewalks are covered and others are not and of how beaches
open at 5 a.m., allowing a few hours to sleep before it gets too hot.”
Nagourney includes a quote from Mr. Caldwell stating, “Sit-lie is about commerce. It’s about
keeping sidewalks open for people to do business.”
“Homelessness has reached every community in the island — in areas where you didn’t see
them five years ago,” he said. “If you are just enforcing and moving people from location to
location you are not really reducing or solving the problem. It’s just making it someone else’s
problems. It’s not like they can leave the state.”
This news article provides insight into Hawaii’s efforts to contain the homeless population on
the island of Oahu. This article acknowledges the growing homelessness population on Oahu
and the state of Hawaii’s efforts to manage this growing issue. Adam Nagourney’s article
written in 2016 focuses on Hawaii’s sit-lie law. This law is a perfect example that displays how
hard it is to effectively control and homelessness. This sit-lie law restricts the homeless
people from sitting on sidewalks and taking shelter in business areas and tourism spots. This
specific law has led to a visible decrease in the number of homeless people that reside on
busy streets of areas like Waikiki, Oahu. It is important to note that with this effort to move
homeless off of certain areas of the island, these homeless individuals will just go to areas
where they will not be harassed as often. Many of those living on the streets of Oahu have
proved their knowledge of different areas on the island to occupy.
In the words of Mayor Kirk Caldwell, “Sit-lie is about commerce”. Efforts to manage
homelessness affect a variety of other societal factors. It is important to understand that
homelessness affects Hawaii’s economy. The tourism industry fuels a large amount of this
state’s economy. If homeless people populate areas that attract many tourists, the state could
see a decrease in the number of tourists coming to Hawaii. Along with this, the sit-lie law was
established in order to promote better business. This reiterates how homelessness influences
society and the economy. In efforts to sustain commerce, Hawaii officials put the sit-lie law
into effect to keep sidewalks open for business purposes.
This article perfectly describes how it can be challenging to establish policies and laws that
effectively solve this problem. The state of Hawaii faces these challenges and the
establishment of the sit-lie law is an example of ineffectively solving this growing social issue.
Despite the efforts, homelessness on Oahu will not be managed just by regulating spaces
where homeless individuals decide to occupy. We cannot effectively fix this issue of
homelessness in Hawaii just by moving homeless individuals from place to place.
Nagourney, Adam. “Aloha and Welcome to Paradise. Unless You’re Homeless.” The New
York Times. The New York Times Company. 3 June 2016.
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/04/us/hawaii-homeless-criminal-law-sitting-
ban.html. Accessed 11 February 2020.
This is a reputable and reliable source because it is a New York Times article. The New York
Times Company is trustworthy with credible writers who have prior experience. Adam
Nagourney, the writer of this article has a lot of past experience making his article credible
and reliable.

Name: Caitlin Idica



Altman and authors explain that, “even within the framework of a relatively straightforward
definition, there is considerable uncertainty about the number of people who are homeless at
any given time in the United States.”
This piece of literature elaborates the simple idea that “poor people move in and out of a state
of homelessness.”
It is important to understand that “studies on the demographic and social characteristics of the
homeless in the United States have almost always been based upon research conducted in
urban areas.”
In terms of characteristics of homeless people, “[they] are a diverse and varied group in terms
of age, ethnicity, family circumstances, and health problems.”
“Moreover, the characteristics of the homeless population differ dramatically from one
community to another.”
Significantly enough, “even the recent increase in homeless families is not uniform throughout
the country.”
This book, written by the Committee on Health Care for Homeless People acknowledge the
still current issue of defining homelessness. The first step in fixing a problem is defining it. In
order to help those who are a part of the homeless population, we need to know who exactly
is considered “homeless”. Described in the beginning of this book, the authors were able to
provide a few operational definitions for those who can be defined as “homeless”. Even with
these helpful descriptions of the homeless population, there is still an uncertainty about how
many people are homeless at any time and place in the United States. It is hard to determine
because many people move in and out of different kinds of homelessness. Those who may
be working and cannot afford a long-term place to live may move in and out of homelessness.
Others, depending on relationships and family members, may be living on the couches of
their loved ones. What is important to understand is that those who are homeless have
different stories, backgrounds, and connections that affect their living situation.
It is a challenge to determine the causation of this societal problem. The characteristics

displayed vary amongst homeless populations. These characteristics can be determined by
race, cultures and locations. Approaching this issue by looking at common factors can be
tricky. This is because the homeless population has such variety. It would be much easier to
solve this social issue if there were more similarities between homeless across the United
States. With many different factors affecting this problem, it is considerably tough to both
understand and help aid in the solution.
In Hawaii, it is no different. To truly understand what it means exactly to be homeless in the

islands, it is important to take into account the location of homeless communities that
populate Hawaii and how the homeless population affects the state. With the different
cultures and environments that make Hawaii so special, the reasons for homelessness differ.
Aiming to decrease the number of people that make up the homeless population would
therefore affect the dynamic of the island including the economy. If the homeless problem in
Hawaii were to diminish over time, the tourism economy in the islands would benefit greatly.
Aside from a better aesthetic, businesses would have a better opportunity to do business
because sidewalks would be clearer. The unfortunate thing is that the first step toward solving
this problem is quite challenging to accomplish.
Altman, Drew, et al. Homelessness, Health, and Human Needs. Washington, D.C., National
Academy Press, 1988.
This is a reputable and reliable source because it is a scholarly publication put together by the
Committee on Health Care for Homeless People. This group is made up of prestigious
members of the health care field across the United States. These professionals are often
professors from impressive university across America joined with others working in higher
positions in health care management.

Name: Caitlin Idica



Hall begins her talk by introducing that, “when we think of homelessness typically, we think of
people sleeping and begging in the street, but many homeless people are hidden.”
She further elaborated that “some are out of sight in night shelters and hostels, yet majority of
homeless people are hidden because they sleep in their cars, stay of friend’ sofas and still
continue with their daily routines as if they’re living situations are stable.”
Hall begins by telling her story of hidden homelessness:

“What happened to us happens to millions of people every day. The income cliff. My mom
worked but the rent and daycare bills exceeded what she made. Her salary was not enough
for us to live on, but according to the U.S. government, her salary was too high to qualify for
assistance.”
“The income cliff is also known as the low wage trap. Every year, struggling moms and dads
keep low-paying jobs in order to continue receiving government benefits because they know
taking a higher paying job will not provide enough to cover their bills.”
“In a world where social media allows us to see what people are wearing, when people are
eating, and where people are traveling, there are still parts of other people’s lives we don’t
see.”
“We don’t see what official figures can’t show us, we can’t see people’s personal histories,
and we don’t see how we can engage with hidden homelessness.”
This TEDx talk by Rachel Hall gives great insight to what “hidden homelessness” is. Rachel
Hall experienced this type of homelessness first-hand with her family. In this TED talk, Hall
does not wait to mention the difficulty of understanding homelessness and who exactly makes
up this population. Many factors contribute to homelessness in the United States. Hidden
homelessness is a concept that is important to understand as it is one of these many factors
attributed to homelessness across the nation. Hall first mentions that those who are homeless
may sleep at airports, in hostels, night shelters, or even friend’s couches. She makes a great
point here. It is difficult to correctly gauge the number of those without a home, making it even
harder to find a way to help these individuals. Families or individuals may bounce in and out
of homelessness. Each person may have different reasons for being homeless. This is why it
is hard to pinpoint general causes as well as help these people get off of the streets.
Another thing worth noting is the income cliff that Hall mentions in her talk. The income cliff,
otherwise known as the low wage trap, explains that people’s bills exceed what they make
but their income does not qualify them for help from the government. Hall expanded that
struggling individuals, those who may need to support a family, keep low paying jobs in order
to receive as much government help as they can get. The counts of the homeless population
that are conducted by the government aren’t as accurate as we may hope. There is no way to
tell if we have accounted for every single individual that populated the streets. This is one of
the major setbacks present when approaching this issue of homelessness.
An interesting quote that Hall mentioned in her talk was about how social media allows
people to see into each other’s lives. She mentions that social media makes it easy to see
what people are doing with their lives. In ways, social media acts like news. Our Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram accounts are personalized to each individual as they are used to boast
about our accomplishments or daily happenings. Social media and the news are some ways
we can see homelessness. Most commonly in a news story. It is interesting to think that a
homeless individual, one who is struggling to meet their financial needs, can get on social
media and post the same as a normal, stable person. This person may be sleeping on family
or friend’s couches or in their own car. It can be so hard to perceive these things as everyone
worries about how the outside world will see them.

Hall, Rachel. “Hidden Homelessness and What We Don’t See.” Ted Talk TEDx University of
St. Andrews. April 2018. Guest Lecture.
This is a reputable and reliable source because it is a TEDx Talk. TEDx provides guest
lecturers like Rachel Hall who have experienced, firsthand, these problems facing our society.

Name: Caitlin Idica


#1: Homelessness in the result of combined risk factors influenced by socio-economic

Nooe and Patterson describe that “from an ecological perspective, homelessness can be
understood as the result of interactions among risk factors ranging from individual conditions
to socio-economic structures and environmental circumstances.”
The authors highlight a recurring theme when talking about the homeless population: “Over
time, homeless individuals may experience changes in housing status that include being on
the street, shared dwelling, emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent housing
and hospitalization and incarceration in correctional facilities.”
Authors Nooe and Patterson explain that “biopsychosocial risk factors encompass a range of
factors including individual biology and development and circumstances such as poverty and
its many facets to housing availability and stability.”
Nooe and Patterson describe an ecological perspective that “recognizes the interaction of
multiple factors on different levels, including individual factors (e.g., personality,
developmental experiences, health-mental health, race, and ethnicity) and social factors,
such as resource availability, policies, culture, discrimination, and social situations.”
There is a reoccurring theme when in terms of the factors that influence homelessness. With
a complex social problem comes complex causes. Nooe and Patterson, the authors of this
scholarly article discuss the factors that contribute to homelessness. The authors mention,
quite a few times, of the use of an ecological perspective. An ecological perspective allows for
the concept of homelessness to be understood. As a result of different risk factors and/or
interactions that occur among them can explain why people are homeless. Of course, it is
much more complicated than this definition provided by an ecological perspective.
Homelessness is a culmination of different socio-cultural and environmental circumstances.
Many of these factors can be considered biopsychosocial meaning that an individual’s
biology, psychological state of being, and their environment can work together to influence
one’s life; in this case, if they are homeless.
Biopsychosocial risk factors cover an abundance of elements that may lead to homelessness.
For example, if someone has a psychological disorder that is biologically predisposed by
heredity or genes, they may not be able to successfully function as a member of society. With
a psychological disorder like this and a susceptibility to alcohol and substance abuse, this
individual can put themselves in danger if not properly cared for and treated. This is just one
example of how different biological, psychological and social factors come together and play
a part in influencing an individual’s life.
This article talks about the interaction of many factors that affect homeless individuals
differently. There are many different reasons for people to be homeless. People may also
come in and out of homelessness which makes it even harder to pinpoint the right things to
alleviate. Since each homeless individual has their own story and their own reasons for their
living status, it is hard to effectively treat this social issue by generalizing all homeless people.
Many efforts to “fix” homelessness in the United States and in the state of Hawaii are not
quite effective because of generalization. It is important to focus on the many factors that
affect homelessness to truly understand how to help fix this problem.
Nooe, Roger M. & Patterson, David A. “The Ecology of Homelessness.” Taylor & Francis
Group. Informa UK Limited. 12 March 2010.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10911350903269757?
scroll=top&needAccess=ttru. 3 March 2020.
This is a reputable and reliable source because it is peer-reviewed journal under human
behavior in the social environment. This source cross references other material and provide
solid sources and information.

Name: Caitlin Idica
Date: 9 March 2020


#1: Homelessness in the result of combined risk factors influenced by socio-economic

Craig Johnson, an individual who came to the islands in 2014 says, “he had about $4,000 in
savings — what he thought was enough to find a place to live and carry him through until he
could line up a new job. He wasn’t expecting for everything to be so expensive.”
“For the first time, the 46-year-old was homeless. After spending a few months on the street,
he checked into an IHS shelter last month” reports Blair in this article.
HIS spokesperson Kimo Carvalho says, “about 10 percent of the state’s homeless population
recently traveled to Hawaii from somewhere else.”
Carvalho reports that “the influx of new arrivals, many of whom were turning up on the streets
of Waikiki, led to the creation of the IHS Airline Relocation Program. “Our relocation program
assists homeless individuals who are currently stuck here in Hawaii with relocating back to
the mainland or wherever they are from,” Carvalho said.
Blair says, “Last year, a total of 128 people took advantage of the program.
Donations from Hawaii’s tourism industry are used to cover half the airfare while the client is
responsible the rest. Before take-off, the shelter confirms they’ve lined up a permanent place
to stay.”
This news article provides insight into a way that the Institute for Human Services
implemented an Airline Relocation Program in 2014 to alleviate the homelessness issue in
Hawaii. The reason for this initiative was a response to an increase in homeless population
due to people coming to Hawaii from other places in the world who later became homeless.
This article first provides a personal interview conducted with Craig Johnson. Johnson was
one of the many people who came to Hawaii and later became homeless. It was evident in
his personal testimony that he did not consider how much the cost of living was here in
Hawaii. Despite saving money and having a plan when coming to Hawaii, it was not enough
for Johnson to keep a stable lifestyle. This man later ended up in an IHS shelter after
struggling to pay for rent as well as keep a job. It costs a lot to live in the state of Hawaii. This
is a major contribution to the growing homeless population in the islands.
Kimo Carvalho is the IHS spokesperson who acknowledged that the state’s homeless
population is affected by individuals who have traveled to Hawaii from the mainland or other
parts of this world. This sparked the creation of the IHS Airline Relocation Program. This
program helps people from outside of the state who end up homeless on the streets of
Hawaii. Many of these people who are unable to adjust to the very demanding costs of living
in Hawaii end up homeless in areas like Waikiki. The reason for this is because these people
from places outside of Hawaii are not familiar with much of the island. Waikiki is the most
familiar to people who are not originally from the islands.
This Airline Relocation Program is funded by donations from the state’s tourism industry.
Homelessness is a growing problem that affects Hawaii’s tourism industry. Aesthetic is very
important, especially when it comes to selling the islands and its beauty. Homeless does not
contribute much good to the goals of the state’s most important industry. IHS, with help from
the tourism industry, sends people from outside of the state back to wherever they came
from. This program covers half of their airfare while the individual or their family takes care of
the rest. This has been an effective program and has sent many people back to the mainland
and other parts of the world since 2014.
Blair, Allyson. “IHS: 1 in 10 Homeless People in Hawaii Just Got Here from Somewhere Else.”
Hawaii News Now. Hawaii News Now. 2019 February 14.
https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2019/02/15/ihs-homeless-people-hawaii-just-got-
here-somewhere-else/. 9 March 2020.
This is a reputable and reliable source because it is posted on the Hawaii News Now website
that highlights important issues facing the state of Hawaii. This allows for an accurate and
specific information in regard to the homeless situation of the state.

Name: Caitlin Idica
Date: 25 March 2020



In this article writer, Van Dam says that the, “Government surveys tabulate everything from
annual population estimates to the unemployment rate. But they focus on people in
households and, in some limited cases, homeless shelters. They miss the 200,000 or more
people who live outdoors.”
This article sheds more light on how “volunteers in hundreds of cities fan out to locate their
peers and neighbors living outside, or in temporary spots such as cars and tents, and ask
survey questions about who they are and how they are doing.”
Van Dam reports that the “HUD requires the outdoor counts at least once every two years.
Many organizations do them annually.”
Author, Van Dam, states that “the volunteers helping with those counts often have deep
experience with a community’s local homeless population, but in just one night they can’t be
expected to canvass every street, peer into every possible living place, or persuade everyone
to answer
Van Dam includes a very thoughtful quote that states: ““Homelessness is a symptom of a
systemwide problem,” according to Claudia Solari who works with the Urban Institute in
Washington.
Solari, who was previously quoted also said, “society often blames the individual and sees
homelessness as a personal problem, but this ignores the role that our social institutions play,
such as not providing enough affordable housing.”
This news article published to the Washington Post was written by Andrew Van Dam. Much
like other reporter, Van Dam uses this article to express the issue of counting the homeless
population across America. He begins by explaining that the government keeps track of
things like population and the unemployment rate. In order for the government to do this, they
look at individuals in households. It was also implied that homeless shelters are taken into
account, but these numbers are not very reliable as people move in an out of homeless
shelters. This article is sure to explain that the government miss much of the homeless
population that live out on the streets.
Andrew Van Dam expounds on his claim that there are “surprising holes in our knowledge of
America’s homeless population” by explaining the efforts of the Department of Housing and
Urban Development or HUD. As highlighted by many other articles covering homelessness in
the United States, volunteers go out and survey large numbers of homeless individuals that
populate the streets. These people are well experienced with interviewing and talking to the
homeless population. These volunteers go out and ask individuals or families that live on the
streets about their current living situations. This is a great way to access information directly
from people experiencing homelessness across many states.
Despite these efforts to gather information about those who are homeless and living on the
streets, these methods of data collection may not provide a truly accurate number of those
who are homeless. There are many people who are not accounted for in these national
counts. People may come in and out of homelessness often. This makes the number of
homeless individuals increase and decrease often. Homelessness is caused by a variety of
social and economic issues that face many citizens. In effort to help alleviate this issue, the
government and organizations like the Department of Housing and Urban Development or
HUD have methods for counting the homeless population. This would help get a better look at
the numbers of those who need better assistance. However, it can be quite difficult to get an
accurate count of those living on the streets.
Van Dam, Andrew. “The Surprising Holes in Our Knowledge of America’s Homeless
Population.” Washington Post. Washington Post. 2019 September 17.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/09/18/surprising-holes-our-
knowledge-americas-homeless-population/.
This is a reputable and reliable source because it is posted on the Washington Post website
where many people turn to for news. This resource provides data from organizations directly
involved in counting the homeless population. This ensures that the information discussed in
this article comes from accurately published information.

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Research Log #1 - Solutionary Project 2020

Three Points to Prove:

Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

(cont. from previous quote)

Three Points to Prove:

Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

Three Points to Prove:

Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

It is a challenge to determine the causation of this societal problem. The characteristics

In Hawaii, it is no different. To truly understand what it means exactly to be homeless in the

Three Points to Prove:

Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

Hall begins by telling her story of hidden homelessness:

Work Cited (correct MLA format):

Three Points to Prove:

Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

Three Points to Prove:

Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

Research Log #7 - Solutionary Project 2020

Three Points to Prove:

Point that this Source/Information Proves:

Excerpts (These should provide insight into the Point to Prove):

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