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deadly consequences if not treated early.

5. Domestic Violence Domestic violence is one of the leading causes of homelessness among women. Battered women who live in poverty are often forced to choose between abusive relationships and homelessness. Almost all women and children experiencing homelessness are fleeing from domestic violence.

6. Mental Illness A relatively large percentage of the single adult homeless population suffers from some form of severe and persistent mental illness. Despite the disproportionate number of severely mentally ill people among the homeless population, increases in homelessness are not attributable to the release of severely mentally ill people from institutions. Homelessness among the mentally ill began to increase when incomes and housing options for those living on the margins began to diminish rapidly. Most homeless persons with mental illness can live in the community with the appropriate supportive housing options, but many mentally ill homeless people are unable to obtain access to supportive housing and/or treatment services.

7. Addiction Disorders The relationship between addiction and homelessness is complex and controversial. While rates of alcohol and drug abuse are disproportionately high among the homeless population, the increase in homelessness cannot be explained by addiction alone. Many people who are addicted to alcohol and drugs never become homeless, but people who are poor and addicted are clearly at increased risk of homelessness. Competition for increasingly scarce low-income housing grew so intense that those with disabilities such as addiction and mental illness were more likely to lose out and find themselves on the streets. Addiction does increase the risk of displacement for the precariously housed; in the absence of appropriate treatment, it may doom one's chances of getting housing once on the streets. Homeless people often face insurmountable barriers to obtaining health care, including addictive disorder treatment services and recovery supports.

In my opinion, regardless if a person became homeless due to any one or all of the causes and reasons for homelessness that were discussed within this paper, I have found that the one cause of homelessness can be reduced down to one simple instigating factor, and that factor is money. If a person had enough money to take care of his or herself, it would dull the above causes for homelessness for most people who would otherwise become homeless. Like the saying goes, "Money is the root of all evil."

I think the theory of conflict perspective applies to the analysis of these social causes for homelessness. This theory is a view of society that focuses on social processes of tension, competition, and change. It emphasizes power and inequality. I think the theory of conflict perspective applies because homelessness is a very tense problem and topic for both society and for the homeless themselves. The problem of homelessness does create quite a bit of tension in society. The homeless are always competing for the limited availability of living space, shelter space, food, health care, lousy jobs, public assistance, etc. The homelessness conundrum is always changing, but never for the good. The powers that be would like to brush the homelessness problem under the carpet because most people who have everything the homeless want and need do not see the homeless as their equal and therefore the homelessness problem will always be overlooked and unresolved.

Learn more about this author, Shane Riley.
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