Jack Tsai1,2,3, Natalie Jones4, Dorota Szymkowiak5, Robert A Rosenheck5,4. 1. National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Central Office, Tampa, FL, USA. Jack.Tsai@uth.tmc.edu. 2. School of Public Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, San Antonio Regional Campus, 7411 John Smith Drive, Suite 1100, San Antonio, TX, 7822, USA. Jack.Tsai@uth.tmc.edu. 3. Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA. Jack.Tsai@uth.tmc.edu. 4. Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA. 5. National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Central Office, Tampa, FL, USA.
Abstract
PURPOSE: Millions of people are evicted from rental properties in the U.S. annually, but little is known about them and their mental health. This study followed a cohort of eviction court participants over time and assessed their housing and mental health outcomes. METHODS: One hundred and twenty-one tenants were recruited from an eviction court in New Haven, Connecticut, and their housing, mental health, and psychosocial status were assessed at baseline, 1, 3, 6, and 9 months following their encounter with the court. Inverse probability weighting was used for missing data. RESULTS: At baseline, 42% of participants had appeared in eviction court before, 28% had experienced eviction, and 44% had been previously homeless. In addition, 39% screened positive for generalized anxiety disorder, 37% for posttraumatic stress disorder, 33% for major depressive disorder, and 17% reported suicidal ideation. At follow-up, participants experienced increased days of housing instability and homelessness over time with some persistent mental health symptoms. Less than one-quarter of participants received any mental health treatment during the 9-month follow-up period. About 54% of participants followed reported that they had to change their residence after their court appearance consistent with court records. Participants who had an eviction-related move experienced greater housing instability over time than participants who did not. CONCLUSION: Together, these findings suggest that there is a sizable subgroup of adults who present to eviction court with persistent housing and mental health issues who do not receive adequate assistance in addressing these issues.
PURPOSE: Millions of people are evicted from rental properties in the U.S. annually, but little is known about them and their mental health. This study followed a cohort of eviction court participants over time and assessed their housing and mental health outcomes. METHODS: One hundred and twenty-one tenants were recruited from an eviction court in New Haven, Connecticut, and their housing, mental health, and psychosocial status were assessed at baseline, 1, 3, 6, and 9 months following their encounter with the court. Inverse probability weighting was used for missing data. RESULTS: At baseline, 42% of participants had appeared in eviction court before, 28% had experienced eviction, and 44% had been previously homeless. In addition, 39% screened positive for generalized anxiety disorder, 37% for posttraumatic stress disorder, 33% for major depressive disorder, and 17% reported suicidal ideation. At follow-up, participants experienced increased days of housing instability and homelessness over time with some persistent mental health symptoms. Less than one-quarter of participants received any mental health treatment during the 9-month follow-up period. About 54% of participants followed reported that they had to change their residence after their court appearance consistent with court records. Participants who had an eviction-related move experienced greater housing instability over time than participants who did not. CONCLUSION: Together, these findings suggest that there is a sizable subgroup of adults who present to eviction court with persistent housing and mental health issues who do not receive adequate assistance in addressing these issues.
Entities:
Keywords:
Evictions; Homelessness; Housing; Mental health
Authors: Anjalika Nande; Justin Sheen; Emma L Walters; Brennan Klein; Matteo Chinazzi; Andrei H Gheorghe; Ben Adlam; Julianna Shinnick; Maria Florencia Tejeda; Samuel V Scarpino; Alessandro Vespignani; Andrew J Greenlee; Daniel Schneider; Michael Z Levy; Alison L Hill Journal: Nat Commun Date: 2021-04-15 Impact factor: 17.694
Authors: Kathryn M Leifheit; Craig E Pollack; Julia Raifman; Gabriel L Schwartz; Robert D Koehler; Jackie V Rodriguez Bronico; Emily A Benfer; Frederick J Zimmerman; Sabriya L Linton Journal: JAMA Netw Open Date: 2021-12-01