Homeless adult males and personal digital assistants: Effects of mastering technology on feelings of self-esteem and self-sufficiency

Returning homelessness people back to productive roles is a difficult task. These people face many problems, such as drug addictions, alcohol abuse, and mental health issues. Job training and employment are difficult to achieve in the midst of these problems. This study focused on the self-esteem and social support of homeless adult males living in a Western Pennsylvania shelter while participating in a basic Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) training program. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how this training affected their overall recovery process and whether it equipped them with any beneficial life skills. Subjects and their case managers were interviewed during different phases of the training using a semi-structured ethnographic interviewing protocol that enquired into feelings of self-esteem and self-sufficiency among homeless shelter clients. There was an observable improvement in self-esteem resulting from PDA ownership before the training began and improved social support during the mid-training phase as the participants assisted each other learning about the device. Post training interviews revealed that all homeless participants moved toward self-sufficiency in varying degrees.