On Homeless Women, Digital Engagement, and Social Inclusion

At the early days of my doctoral study and fellowship at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, University of Southern California (USC) over two years ago, I conducted a 10-month field research to understand the dynamics of digital access and use among people experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles. It was the first time I witnessed a massive number of houseless individuals and families residing on the street and struggling to sustain their lives on minimal sustenance and digital means. Many of them battled every day to protect their phones from being stolen, lost, or broken due to their precarious living conditions. People living on the street and in transitional housing walked a long distance to find a public charging outlet or else had to rent it in a nearly mobile phone shop. Technology, to them, is more of a luxury than a necessity. Without a doubt, the instability of digital access is an issue for this population. Similarly, solving access problems, providing underserved populations digital devices and infrastructure, is oftentimes the first step in many digital inclusion efforts. However, do people in the community – men and women – all have access to the technology equally? Is having access alone enough to help improve the livelihoods, connectivity, and well-being among all? Once having access, how do people, especially more vulnerable individuals like women, use technology to empower themselves? How can technology be relevant to women’s needs? As my project progressed, I realized that social exclusion is an issue facing homeless women, and that positive digital uses can help them improve their lives.

[Hoan (Sarah) Nguyen is a doctoral researcher and Graduate Fellow at the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California (USC). This research garnered her the Charles Benton Early Career Scholar Award (2020) from the Benton Institute and TPRC.]