A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives”
The book Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives seeks to explore the role of religion and personal transformation in people's experiences of homelessness. While the goals show promise, this response offers a critique of the claims provided by...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Western Libraries, The University of Western Ontario
2024-11-01
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| Series: | International Journal on Homelessness |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/ijoh/article/view/14835 |
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| author | Erin Dej |
| author_facet | Erin Dej |
| author_sort | Erin Dej |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The book Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives seeks to explore the role of religion and personal transformation in people's experiences of homelessness. While the goals show promise, this response offers a critique of the claims provided by the authors. Here, I suggest that binary thinking around 'structural' and 'individual' causes of homelessness, methodological challenges, missing clarity on what amounts to 'success,’ and a lack of sensitivity to the narratives and experiences of people who are homeless does not advance the scholarship on homelessness. Instead, I point to concerns about how longstanding myths and stereotypes about homelessness may be reinforced through this form of analysis that individualizes and blames people for experiences that are ultimately driven by and mediated through structural barriers. The response also offers insight into where to take research of this nature, including an emphasis on how spirituality and caring for the whole person offers an opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to homelessness literature. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ca230024adad48dc8de5c9f723ba2c30 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2564-310X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | Western Libraries, The University of Western Ontario |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal on Homelessness |
| spelling | doaj-art-ca230024adad48dc8de5c9f723ba2c302025-08-20T02:20:18ZengWestern Libraries, The University of Western OntarioInternational Journal on Homelessness2564-310X2024-11-011910.5206/ijoh.2023.3.148359072A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives”Erin DejThe book Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives seeks to explore the role of religion and personal transformation in people's experiences of homelessness. While the goals show promise, this response offers a critique of the claims provided by the authors. Here, I suggest that binary thinking around 'structural' and 'individual' causes of homelessness, methodological challenges, missing clarity on what amounts to 'success,’ and a lack of sensitivity to the narratives and experiences of people who are homeless does not advance the scholarship on homelessness. Instead, I point to concerns about how longstanding myths and stereotypes about homelessness may be reinforced through this form of analysis that individualizes and blames people for experiences that are ultimately driven by and mediated through structural barriers. The response also offers insight into where to take research of this nature, including an emphasis on how spirituality and caring for the whole person offers an opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to homelessness literature.https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/ijoh/article/view/14835responsereligioncauses of homelessnessindividualstructural |
| spellingShingle | Erin Dej A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives” International Journal on Homelessness response religion causes of homelessness individual structural |
| title | A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives” |
| title_full | A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives” |
| title_fullStr | A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives” |
| title_full_unstemmed | A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives” |
| title_short | A response to Jindra, Jindra, and DeGenero’s “Contrasts in Religion, Community, and Structure at Three Homeless Shelters: Changing Lives” |
| title_sort | response to jindra jindra and degenero s contrasts in religion community and structure at three homeless shelters changing lives |
| topic | response religion causes of homelessness individual structural |
| url | https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/ijoh/article/view/14835 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT erindej aresponsetojindrajindraanddegeneroscontrastsinreligioncommunityandstructureatthreehomelessshelterschanginglives AT erindej responsetojindrajindraanddegeneroscontrastsinreligioncommunityandstructureatthreehomelessshelterschanginglives |