Marjorie Robertson, PhD, Alcohol Research Group, Albany, CA
Natalie Harris, Miami Valley Housing Opportunities, Dayton, OH
Nancy Fritz, MDiv, Governor's Office, Augusta, ME
Rebecca Noftsinger, Westat, Rockville, MD
Pamela Fischer, PhD, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services, Rockville, MD



Disclaimer: The paper presents the views and opinions of the respective author(s) and does not necessarily represent the views, positions, and policies of the federal government.

For the 1998 Symposium on Homelessness Research, rural homelessness was not assigned as a paper topic in its own right. Due to its increasing significance, the authors prepared a paper on rural homelessness for the 2007 Symposium. Given the somewhat limited formal research available, the authors supplemented their literature review with information from government documents and technical assistance materials as well as input from an expert panel of researchers and practitioners. The paper summarizes what is documented to date about the characteristics of people who are homeless in rural areas and examines whether rural homelessness and the service approaches to address it can be differentiated from urban homelessness. The authors identify gaps in current knowledge about rural homelessness and recommend new directions for research.