What is it about?
People who panhandle are among the most visible persons facing poverty and un- or under-employment. This qualitative investigation interviewed a sample of individuals (6 men, 3 women) who panhandled in a medium-size city in the midwest. We discovered their needs were both psychological (e.g., need for recognition and humanizing treatment) as well as material (e.g., money for basic needs; assistance with job re-integration and transportation). Current social service institutions met only a portion of the needs of people who panhandle.
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Why is it important?
Our findings suggest that increasing public transportation options, investing in job reintegration, education, and training, as well as supportive housing, financial savings, and other stabilizing services, would help to bolster movement from homelessness toward stability and long-term employment. Using a psychology of working perspective, we discuss our findings across the contexts of social connection, self-determination, and survival and power. We hope this perspective offers theoretical as well as concrete ways to work with individuals who are panhandling.
Perspectives
I found this project extremely rewarding. Our conversations with people who were panhandling were enlightening as well as heart-breaking. It is evident from our work that psychologists and other mental health workers along with agencies and policymakers need to reexamine our current structures for working with people who are experiencing poverty, homelessness, and job instability. It is my hope that this article helps to move this conversation forward and at least makes readers think differently and more compassionately about the people they encounter on their morning commute.
Dr. Michael Cadaret
Chatham University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: A Qualitative Investigation of the Experiences of People Who Panhandle, The Counseling Psychologist, October 2018, SAGE Publications,
DOI: 10.1177/0011000018810774.
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