The French survey of homeless people using shelters and soup kitchens - ARCHIVED

This paper discusses in detail issues dealing with the technical aspects of designing and conducting surveys. It is intended for an audience of survey methodologists.

The French survey of homeless people using support services is unique because of its scope and the conditions under which it was conducted. About 4,000 users of shelters and soup kitchens were surveyed in January and February 2001. Because some users move from one service point to another, it was necessary to collect precise data on the number of times each respondent used such services (meals and person-nights) during the week preceding the survey. Data quality is extremely important since it has a major impact on the sampling weight assigned to each individual.