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: the 13th juror

Ever heard of "learned helplessness"?

If you've never heard of "learned helplessness," you probably don't understand why some homeless people say they don't want help.

A lot of people believe that many homeless people live on the streets by choice. Just read the comments to any newspaper article about homelessness. Okay, there are a few (but, in my experience, they're most likely to be woods campers).

For most of the people who say they like being homeless, it's just a defense mechanism. "No, I'm okay. Really."

In many cases, what that kind of comment means is that they've given up.

What you should remember, the next time you encounter "learned helplessness," is that we must never give up on them.

Read more at Change.org, in the post "When the Homeless Don't Want Help."

Full post as published by the 13th juror on August 11, 2010 (boomark / email).