NCJ Number
143562
Journal
Justice Quarterly Volume: 9 Issue: 4 Dated: (December 1992) Pages: 721-729
Date Published
1992
Length
9 pages
Annotation
Two hundred minority and nonminority homeless women were compared in a study of the nature and extent of their victimization experiences while living on the streets, their perceptions of vulnerability to victimization risk, and their fear of crime.
Abstract
Information was gathered through personal interviews in three homeless shelters, on the streets, and in transportation centers. Availability sampling was used, with an emphasis on including variability that represented all the lifestyles of homeless women. Homeless women who displayed obvious signs of mental illness or who could not be understood were not interviewed. Results revealed that the average ages were 45 for minority women and 54 for nonminority women. The minority women had lived on the streets for an average of 12 months, compared with 16 months for the other women. Ninety-five percent of the minority women reported that they spent most of their time outside the shelter, whereas 89 percent of the nonminorities reported spending most of their time inside the shelter. Results also indicated that minority homeless women experience more victimization and are more fearful than are nonminority homeless females. These results can be explained by differences in the routine lifestyles of the two groups of women while living on the streets. Tables and 26 references (Author abstract modified)