Page 68 - IJPS-9-1

International Journal of
Population Studies Düsseldorfer Model for counting homeless people

intended to enable people who are capable of working to were interested and users of the homeless support system
meet their basic material needs, insofar as they cannot could be reached. The interviews were arranged by the
cover those expenses with their own resources or with the professionals but conducted by employees of the association
help of others. The purpose of ALG II is to grant eligible responsible for this study. Nevertheless, the setting of the
individuals benefits that enable them to live in dignity. The homeless support system, given the institutional context,
number of postal addresses and the number receivers of could have biased interviewees toward giving answer
ALG-II were expected be similar to the numbers counted socially desirable responses. To minimize that potential
and were used as control numbers. influence as well as to reach diverse users, interviews were
available to be conducted at different times of day, and
2.2. Qualitative study from the user’s perspective interviewees could be interviewed wherever they wanted
Conducting a qualitative survey from the subjective and with interviewers of whichever gender they preferred.
perspective of users allowed to clarify the conditions of the
use or non-use of spaces at both social and institutional 3. Key findings
levels. Thus, the focus was which spaces enable a specific 3.1. Results of the quantitative key date survey
use for users of social work contexts, on the one hand, and, The counting was performed on October 28, 2021,
on the other, which location-specific behavior is associated between 10:30 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. During that time, all 179
with it. Such sociospatial user-based research allows social areas of Düsseldorf were walked or driven through
focusing on “which (non-)benefits the social work services by 70 teams, for a total of 141 counters. Table 1 presents
have from the perspective of the users (content level) and the results of the night count. Ultimately, 239 people who
how the users make use of the social work services (process were or seemed to be homeless were recorded by the
level)” (van Rießen, 2022a). teams during the night count: 186 men, 31 women, and 22
Following the approach of sociospatial user research, people of unknown gender. Furthermore, 22 people with
30 users of the homeless support system participated in no permanent address were reported by the clinics, and no
semistructured interviews (Helfferich, 2011) to gain insight one without a permanent address was in police custody. On
into the living situations of homeless people, which allow the key date, 198 people — 124 men and 74 women — were
interviewees to speak as freely as possible to approximate accommodated in Düsseldorf’s shelters.
an open conversation. The guidelines used in the interviews In addition, 2241 postbox addresses (1620 men,
enabled setting thematic emphases to similar extents and 620 women, and 1 other) were provided on the key date
ensured the comparability of the interviews (Gläser & by the ten homeless support institutions in Düsseldorf that
Laudel, 2010). The interview guideline developed based enable postbox addresses. The job center also reported 461
on Susanne Gerull’s (2018) first systematic life situation people who were receiving ALG-II without housing costs
study, considers the multidimensionality of different on the key date. Those figures were collected as control
areas of life as well as their interactions and thus enables figures. Table 2 shows the number of postbox addresses and
“a holistic view of people’s life situation” (Gerull, 2018, the number of recipients of ALG-II without housing costs.
p. 3). The starting point was therefore the empirically
analyzed perspective of users on the topics of their material The high number of people with postbox addresses was
situation, employment, housing, health, security, social discussed with actors in the homeless support system, who
determined that the number indicates the large population
participation, and social networks, along with a question living in precarious housing conditions. Examples include
about their hopes for the future. Those life situation areas postal delivery workers living in their cars, people living
were extended with questions about the reasons for the in inadequate housing or houses without official postal
interviewees’ homelessness, their everyday life, and recent addresses, or people living in precarious housing conditions
changes in life due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Other that prevent them from providing such addresses as their
possible categories could not be considered in this study. postal addresses.
The transcribed guided interviews were analyzed using
content-structuring analysis following Kuckartz (2018). 3.2. Results of the qualitative study

The interviews were conducted not only with people From September 21 to November 24, 2021, semistructured
who are homeless but also with people who spend their interviews were conducted with 30 people who are
nights in various settings (e.g., with friends or in inpatient homeless. The qualitative study reached 30 homeless
facilities) because they do not have their own residence. people, all 24–60 years old, 23 of whom were men, and
Because the interviews could be conducted only with seven of whom were women. Although the use of the
users of the homeless support system, only people who category “person with migration background” is often

Volume 9 Issue 1 (2023) 62 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.397