Abstract
Poverty rates in rural areas and city suburbs stem mainly from changes in resident families’ poverty levels (Howell & Timberlake, 2014) and pre-existing mental health-related issues. When the search for better employment opportunities drives internal migration, it often becomes unidirectional: from the rural to the urban areas. For many, this often means urban poverty, homelessness, and deprivation (Speak, 2010), and often people end up living in public housing, struggling with mental health issues that are either related to the new environments and challenges, or are pre-existing. Some of these could be related to their negative experiences during childhood, known as Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). It has been documented that ACEs can result in adult vulnerability, affect health and opportunities in life, and play a role in adverse housing outcomes (Grey & Woodfine, 2018). However, the specific association between ACEs and living in public housing, whether generational or not, has not been thoroughly researched. Therefore, this paper focuses on the results of a research study based on public housing residents in a medium-sized city in the Southern United States, where the local Housing Authority manages approximately 2,300 low-income apartments housing individuals, couples, and families. The research study (a) investigates ACEs’ role in intergenerational public housing, (b) looks into how public housing residents’ specific social-mental health needs can be successfully addressed, and (c) identifies the barriers related to accessing the much-needed resources and services. The results are presented through the lens of internal migration.
Presenters
Amy MejiasStudent, Master of Social Work (August 2024), Southern Adventist University, Tennessee, United States Laura Racovita
Professor of Social Work/ Dean, Social Work, Southern Adventist University, Tennessee, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Public Housing, Adverse Childhood Experiences, Poverty, Mental Health, Generational Poverty
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