A tale of two cities: Predicting homeless people’s uptake of outreach programs in London and New York

Two studies involved structured interviews with 203 homeless people to examine the impact of

sociodemographic variables, prior behavior, and the theory of planned behavior (TPB) variables,

attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and intention, on uptake of outreach

services. Study 1was conducted in London, and Study 2 involved a comparable sample in

New York. In line with previous research, the psychological variables accounted for more variance

than the sociodemographic variables, and there was no evidence that the effects of TPB

variables were moderated by sociodemographics. In London intentions and behavior were

most affected by perceived control and subjective norms. In New York they were most affected

by perceived control and attitude. These differences may be attributable to different institutional

structures and opportunities for service uptake in the two cities. Sensitivity of the TPB to

social context and implications for intervention strategies are discussed in light of these differences