Does Context Matter? Examining the Mental Health Among Homeless People

While much research has focused on the impact community has on health and wellbeing of domiciled populations, limited research has explored the same for homeless people. Using multivariate models, this research explores what factors are related to depressive symptomatology among homeless people living in two distinctly different communities. Results suggest that context matters, but not for every circumstance examined in these models. While some variables exhibit a consistent relationship with depressive symptoms, the role of social capital is noted as particularly important to lowering symptomatology, yet its impact differs significantly by location.