Then (2015), Chasing the Scream
The Housing First Evidence: Connection as Concrete Policy
Hari's connection model implies that stable housing, the most fundamental form of social connection and security, should reduce addiction and its harms. He doesn't explicitly discuss Housing First programs but his framework predicts they should work: address the disconnection, and the drug use diminishes.
confirmed
Housing First (the policy of providing permanent housing before requiring sobriety) has accumulated among the strongest evidence in social policy research. The Canadian At Home/Chez Soi study (Goering et al., 2014, n=2,148): Housing First participants spent 73% of time stably housed versus 32% in controls; community functioning significantly better; drug use not significantly worse despite no abstinence requirement. Finland's 'Y-Foundation' Housing First program eliminated rough sleeping in Helsinki (2025). The US VA's HUD-VASH program reduced veteran homelessness by 55% between 2009 and 2022. Housing First confirms Hari's connection hypothesis: stable shelter is the platform on which recovery becomes possible. Housing stability precedes sobriety, not the reverse.
Sources
- Goering et al., At Home/Chez Soi Study (2014)
- US Department of Housing and Urban Development, PIT Count (2022)
- Finland Housing First evaluation (2025)