Why do many homeless people prefer to sleep on the street than go to a shelter?

The main reason is that many shelters want the homeless to take mandatory drug programs to get a bed, according to sociologists Jason Wasserman and Jeffrey Michael Clair.

Wasserman is assistant professor of sociology in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work at Texas Tech University and Clair is associate professor of sociology in the Department of Sociology and Social Work at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

They published their research findings in a book, “At Home on the Street: People, Poverty and a Hidden Culture of Homelessness.”

” It seemed the shelters dealt with addiction and mental illness almost exclusively,” Wasserman said. “That’s great if that’s your problem, but alienating if it’s not. One thing nearly all homeless people do want is jobs.”

To read a Newswise article on the research click here.