Browsing by Author "Suess Kennedy, Sheila"

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    From Homeownership to Foreclosure: Exploring the Meanings Homeowners Associate with the Lived Experience of Foreclosure
    (2014-10) Murphy-Nugen, Amy; Adamek, Margaret E.; Byers, Katharine; Luca Sugawara, Carmen; McGuire, Lisa; Suess Kennedy, Sheila
    This study is an interpretative phenomenological analysis that explored the meanings homeowners associated with their lived experience of foreclosure. In the wake of the 2006 housing crash and 2008 Great Recession, questions have been posed about the continued efficacy of homeownership as an asset-based strategy. In addition, the conversation has been dominated by traditional economic and business interests. Discussions about housing policy and foreclosure response have marginalized the voice of vulnerable populations. The literature on housing policy reflects a positivist perspective that privileges analysis of unit production, economic costs and benefits. Secondary attention is given to exploring housing and foreclosure from a critical and constructivist standpoint. Consequently, this study intentionally engaged people who have experienced foreclosure. Depth and meaning were uncovered through interpretative phenomenological analysis. A purposive sample of five homeowners who experienced foreclosure was identified. The five homeowners participated in semi-structured interview. Transcribed interviews were analyzed using the six-step process articulated for interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA). IPA combines three philosophical foundations—phenomenology, hermeneutics, and idiography—to approach qualitative and experiential research. The findings of this study discovered that foreclosure represents disconnection for the participants. Specifically, due to experiencing foreclosure, participants felt separated from their self-identity, from housing finance literacy, from their relationship with their mortgage lender and servicers, from the benefits of homeownership and from self-sufficiency due to their social service-based, helping-based, and/or low-wage employment. Study findings both affirm and challenge relevant theoretical frameworks. In addition, this research underscores the need for social work education to address financial literacy. Further, social work practitioners should be prepared to either provide or refer consumers to home-buyer education and training. Social workers should also challenge exploitative consumer practices and offer empowering alternatives in their place. Lastly, this research offers strategies and practices to strengthen housing policy and foreclosure response for the benefit of consumers.
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    NEWS AND CIVIC LITERACY;WHAT’S THE CONNECTION?
    (Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2015-04-17) Fields, Whitney; Thelin, Rachel; Suess Kennedy, Sheila
    The Center for Civic Literacy (CCL) at IUPUI is a Signature Center Grant recipient. CCL is a multi-disciplinary research center established to examine the causes and dimensions of Americans’ low levels of civic knowledge, and to investigate the consequences of personal, social, and political civic ignorance. CCL takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the causes and effects of deficits in civic literacy, while also examining best practices that combat civic deficits across sectors of society, including public affairs, science, education, business, and healthcare. The latest project from the center investigates how low levels of civic and news literacy intersect; what’s the connection and why does it matter? A study from America University states, “news habits tend to be formed early; if young people turn away from the news, it may lead to a less informed citizenry and make it less likely that there will be a critical mass of news consumers to sustain the high-quality journalism and information production crucial to a healthy democracy” (Hayes, 2014, p.222). The center is currently gathering such research to make the case for an IPS program in high schools which would teach both news and civic literacy.
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    WE ALL HAVE TO DO IT: PURPOSE AND PROCESS OF LITERATURE REVIEW
    (Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2014-04-11) Lafata, Deborah; Weiss, Anne; Thelin, Rachel; Suess Kennedy, Sheila
    The Center for Civic Literacy (CCL) at IUPUI is a Signature Center Grant recipient. CCL is a multi-disciplinary research center established to examine the causes and dimensions of Americans’ low levels of civic knowledge, and to investigate the consequences of personal, social, and political civic ignorance. CCL takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the causes and effects of deficits in civic literacy, while also examining best practices that combat civic deficits across sectors of society, including public affairs, science, education, business, and healthcare. To further understand the nature of civic deficits, CCL must first define ‘civic literacy’ across these varied disciplinary contexts. This process requires thorough review and assessment of existing research that addresses various aspects of civic knowledge. CCL’s poster will showcase the purpose, challenges, and lessons learned from engaging in an iterative process of a multi-disciplinary literature review. An additional goal of presenting CCL’s literature review approach is to encourage attendees to consider how researchers frame, refine, and rework their understanding of a particular topic to strengthen their research objectives.