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Ground-Truthing the Experiences of Homeless Older Adults' Recent Stays with Family and Friends: A Case Study of Participatory Data Analysis
Author(s) -
Margaret A. Handley,
Margot Kushel,
John Weeks,
Pamela Olsen,
Janny Castillo,
Kelly R. Knight
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
journal of health care for the poor and underserved
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.511
H-Index - 59
eISSN - 1548-6869
pISSN - 1049-2089
DOI - 10.1353/hpu.2022.0020
Subject(s) - thematic analysis , participatory action research , citizen journalism , community based participatory research , interpersonal communication , psychology , qualitative research , sociology , gerontology , medicine , social psychology , political science , social science , anthropology , law
Many older homeless adults have recently stayed with family or friends, yet little is understood about these experiences. We conducted a multimethod qualitative study of older unhoused adults in Oakland, California. First, we conducted in-depth interviews among older adults experiencing homelessness with recent stays with a housed family member or friend (n=46), hosts (n=19), and program key informants (n=11). Second, we developed thematic summaries in the form of character-based composite stories, which were presented to a Council of Elders with lived experiences of homelessness, to explore reactions, referred to as ground-truthing, a form of participatory data analysis. Predominantly, participants were African American men. Barriers included structural factors (discrimination), policy (lease restrictions), community (violence), interpersonal factors (power dynamics), and individual factors (health problems). Factors enhancing stays included inter-generational support and leveraging resources. Ground-truthing discussions reinforced and expanded upon findings (e.g., importance of neighborhood identity, training needs, how self-improvement affects readiness to live with others).

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