The subculture of homelessness is split into two primary segments: those who have suffered economic hardships forcing them to lose housing and those who opt for a transient lifestyle. Both populations have a high incidence of drug abuse, mental illness, and criminal behavior that create a burden on society. However, there is also a segment of the population who are content to be homeless and live a “hobo lifestyle.”

Almost everyone has a connection to this subculture. Some are connected because they know or have been homeless. Others live in constant fear of the threat of homelessness due to difficult financial times. My personal connections to homelessness have mostly to do with their negative impact in communities. They are driven out of cities due to unsightly shelters, drug use, public urination and public defecation. They also beg via panhandling where it has not been prohibited, and they have assaulted individuals while in impaired mental states. They are pushed out of mainstream society as a group because of the high incidence of these negative actions, and they are collectively stigmatized as a nuisance.

This subculture is currently in the news as communities try to build homeless tent cities and other temporary housing solutions. In rural areas, it is a challenge to move homeless congregations from city limits, as there are a lack of resources. The homeless are also in the news due to a recent Hepatitis A outbreak in San Diego, mostly affecting the homeless. The city has bleached its sidewalks and provided mobile handwashing stations in order to prevent the spread of the disease, but multiple people have lost their lives as a result of the outbreak.

The scope of the subject of homelessness is broad, and it will likely need to be narrowed in order for it to be thoroughly researched. Those who are involuntarily homeless due to loss of occupation or other unpreventable hardship will likely make use of social services available. This leaves the transient population as a remaining interest. In the city, transients have access to social services, and urban populations are more likely to set up tent cities and provide services for their homeless. The rural transient homeless population is another story. They don’t have as many resources, and they aren’t likely to seek social services, so they become a public health and safety risk. The rural transient homeless population could benefit from research.

Pitfalls in researching rural transient homeless populations revolve mostly around safety. Since they don’t access social services, they won’t be found in “safe” environments. The best time to reach these people is at their camps at night, and they may be under the influence of mind-altering substances by this time. Ethically, it may not be a sound decision to interview the transient homeless person. They may not be of sound mine and fit the legal definition of mental incapacitation. Therefore, I will conduct research through literary reviews of articles where focus has been limited to the rural homeless, transient homeless and rural transient homeless populations. I will also conduct interviews of people working in areas near homeless camps and research news sources for complaints. Speaking to social service workers could also be beneficial, as they may have tried to get help to this population and been unsuccessful.

My preconceived notions about this population are that they are dangerous and mentally unstable. My motivation for choosing this population is to discover the intentional hobo, the vagabond, or the person who just loves life free from the constraints of society. My gut feeling is that we should be allowed to live free from society, but the people who do so are stigmatized due to the statistical probability that my preconceived notions are true.