Easing administrative burden in the public safety net: insights from a trauma-informed housing programme

2026/04/06 by Andrea Hetling, Vee Yeo, Lillian McFarland · 1 voice
Social Sciences · Health Professions · #Intimate Partner and Family Violence #Homelessness and Social Issues #Elder Abuse and Neglect

paper · pdf · doi:10.1017/s0047279426101354

openalex publication_date 2026/04/06 · openalex created_date 2026/04/07 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/02

Abstract

Abstract For survivors of domestic violence, public safety net benefits, including housing, food, and cash assistance, are often critical resources in establishing independent, safe lives. Using a reflexive thematic analysis of qualitative data from a local housing programme collected from August 2023 to January 2024, this study explores the intersection of trauma-informed care (TIC) and administrative burden within public safety net programmes for survivors of domestic violence. Findings demonstrate that barriers to accessing and participating in the public safety net, including learning, compliance, and psychological costs, hinder survivors’ recovery and stability, and clash with TIC principles. Conversely, TIC-aligned practices at the local housing programme, including strong case management, peer support, and flexible programming, mitigate these challenges. Research and policy implications related to how the integration of TIC principles can ease administrative burden in the public safety net are discussed.

Citations

• Using thematic analysis in psychology
• State Agent or Citizen Agent: Two Narratives of Discretion
• The Bite of Administrative Burden: A Theoretical and Empirical Investigation
• Administrative Burden: Learning, Psychological, and Compliance Costs in Citizen-State Interactions
• One size fits all? What counts as quality practice in (reflexive) thematic analysis?
• Administrative Capital and Citizens’ Responses to Administrative Burden
• A worked example of Braun and Clarke’s approach to reflexive thematic analysis
• Working Within a System of Administrative Burden: How Street-Level Bureaucrats’ Role Perceptions Shape Access to the Promise of Higher Education
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• National Estimates of Exposure to Traumatic Events and PTSD Prevalence Using DSM-IV and DSM-5 Criteria

Discussions

• The blog post is based on an article by Andrea Hetling, Vee Yeo, and Lillian McFarland, published in the Journal of Social Policy (Open Access). doi.org/10.1017/S004... [bsky, 3 points, 0 comments]

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