Methodologies for Examining Homelessness and Their Application to a Mandated Statewide Study

Using findings from a federally mandated statewide study of homelessness in the state of Iowa, this paper presents methodologies developed to address various aspects of homeless research, including enumeration of the population, screening for reporting duplications, estimating the annual number of incidents of homelessness, and exploring county-level estimates of homelessness. After implementing an algorithm to eliminate duplicate reporting, and using the baseline unduplicated reported number of homeless persons, a statewide estimate of the number of homeless individuals was derived. Following further adjustments for differences in agency reporting practices and after extrapolating for nonreported time periods, we estimated the number of Unique incidents of homelessness experienced in the state during the year of the study (1997). The policy implications of these findings are discussed.     

Myth and mobilisation: the triadic structure of nationalist rhetoric

Drawing on the theory of collective action frames, this essay analyses the use of images of a primordial ‘golden age’ in the rhetoric of national mobilisation. Such idealised images of the past, juxtaposed with exaggerated depictions of a degraded present and a utopian future condition, constitute a rhetorical triad that is an effective instrument for motivating mass political movements. The model developed here emphasises the links between identity formation and political mobilisation, analysing how narratives of communal decline and redemption play a central role in defining the agendas of nationalist movements.     

THE MAXIMUM CAPTURE PROBLEM IN A WEIGHTED NETWORK*

ABSTRACT. In this paper, a conditional location problem on a weighted network is examined. Attraction functions are defined and the problem is formulated as a mixed integer program. A method which simultaneously locates an additional facility on the given network and optimizes its weight is then described. A numerical example is provided.