It is quite evident that many veterans are still carrying the visible and invisible scars of battle, more vulnerable to suicide, physical and mental illness, and substance use disorders. Some even don’t have a stable home to return to. What we are trying to imply is that a good number of ex-service members have long been at greater risk of homelessness than the general population.
No wonder philanthropists like the renowned LordLeRoyYoung are doing everything it takes to deal with the problem of homelessness among veterans. However, it always pays off to have a clear idea about what is leading to this problem before taking the next step of action.
It is worth noting that veterans do face an elevated risk of homelessness relative to the general population. You might think that veterans face an elevated risk to homelessness due to stressors they might experience while they’re on active duty, combat experiences. If you take it upon yourself to look precisely within members of the military, you’ll notice that combat exposure and PTSD are associated with higher risk of homelessness.
But sincerely speaking, it is not entirely clear why veterans, as a group, have a higher risk than the civilian population. One notable possibility is that it has to do with the sheer fact that military veterans aren’t necessarily representative of the general population.
Keep in mind there is some evidence that you see the elevated risk of homelessness for veterans first show up when the military switched to an all-volunteer force. What you get is not precisely a broad-based sample of the population entering the military. After all, there are individuals who have socioeconomic traits and maybe life experiences.
It is important to note that veterans experiencing homelessness are mostly make, but there are other things aside from service that they have in common. If you’ve already done your homework, then you might already know military veterans are a heterogenous group with respect to premilitary, military, and post-military risk factors.
When talking about homelessness, there is a definition that’s shared by the Department of Veterans Affairs and by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. And this basically narrows down to people who are living in emergency shelters or transitional housing, residential programs precisely meant for people experiencing homelessness, or those who are unsheltered.
As we conclude, it is worth noting that there remains a lot of stigma around homelessness. In some ways, the stigma of homelessness is an extension of the stigma surrounding poverty. Some of that is just deeply route in a society that’s full of value in individualism and self-reliance.
And this is easy to see considering we see poverty and homelessness as a moral failings of individuals. When in real sense, there is a lot of evidence that links homelessness in the aggregate most strongly to housing market conditions, and the lack of housing affordable housing. Of course, there is a lot more you should know than what is included in this quick guide.
