"It Has Forever Changed Me": A Phenomenological Study of the Experiences of Social Workers Who Work with Homeless Individuals in a Low-Barrier Shelter

Background and Purpose: The majority of research on homelessness is primarily concerned with the experiences of homeless individuals. There is a marked absence of literature addressing the unique experiences of social workers who work with homeless populations in low-barrier shelters. These shelters often function as a last resort for individuals who are unable to meet the expectations of more traditional social service settings.

This study helps to fill this gap by providing a deeper understanding of the experiences of social workers who work with homeless individuals in low-barrier shelters.

Methods: In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with six social workers from a low-barrier day shelter in the northeastern United States. The sample is split evenly between male and female, with one participant identifying as African American and the remainder of participants identifying as white. Participants were recruited at their place of employment and interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview schedule to elicit participants’ experiences. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a qualitative, hermeneutic phenomenological approach guided by the theoretical principles of social constructionism.

Results: Four essential themes emerged from the data: 1) engaging authentically, 2) experiences of trauma, 3) team solidarity, and 4) adopting the spirit of the work.

This study supports an extensive body of literature on the adverse effects, such as burnout, compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma, of working with marginalized and traumatized populations. It also adds the profound fact that practitioners who work in low-barrier shelters experience direct trauma by engaging with clients during medical emergencies, drug overdoses, and client death.

This study adds to the body of research on the emerging concept of vicarious resilience. Participants described how the work has personally transformed them, prompting them to foster hope in the face of adversity, reassess the significance of their own personal problems, and view others in more compassionate and empathetic ways. Participants provided a new narrative for the profession that counters the “cautionary tale” of front-line practice.

This study suggests that practitioners can foster protective factors for themselves through authentic relationship building with clients. This authentic relationship building is rooted in reciprocity between practitioners and clients, a concept that underlies the development of vicarious resilience. This study also highlights that participants engage in more flexible boundary setting with clients, as the traditional concept of social work boundary setting is often at odds with the intimate environment of the low-barrier shelter.

Conclusion and Implications: Findings highlight a need for the social work profession to encourage discourse that challenges the traditional concept of boundary setting that is influenced by the medical model and harbors inherent power dynamics within the therapeutic relationship. Further research is needed on vicarious resilience and its ability to ameliorate the adverse effects of work with traumatized individuals. Further research is needed to uncover the ways in which direct-trauma experiences in the workplace affect practitioners. This study reflects the need for organizational policy that includes the development and application of support and training opportunities that address issues such as self-care and workplace trauma.