Homelessness as a social problem will be explained by using the social pathology model. Homelessness Australia (2013) studied 25% of homelessness are caused by domestic abuse and is the highest cause. Hence this is the sample that will be used to demonstrate that dysfunction in one or more institutions causes homelessness for some.
Domestic abuse is an indication of a dysfunctional family institution which means the roles of the family members are not being fulfilled, for instance, females have an important role of caregivers where males have the role of defender/ guardian in the family institution.
Due to a family member not doing their part within the institution, the institution falls apart and becomes dysfunctional and will probably experience a breakdown. This break down leads to the abused party living in a risky arrangement that is like-minded with Chamberlain and Mackenzie’s (1992) definition of homelessness under the sections that there is no promise of how long the abused party can stay and that they may be living in temporary accommodations in the worst case scenario wherein the abuser has alienated the abused party from their support networks, the abused party may live on the streets or enter an emergency shelter.
The domestic abuse is an indication of dysfunctions in the educational institutions within the manifest function of educating children and the latent function of children learning how to interact in a socially acceptable manner.
This can be associated to governmental dysfunction, in poor policymaking concerning what is comprised in the national education values and curricula, and the following disappointment of the educational institution to apply curricula that acts as a solid guiding hand for the students under that curriculum. All of this can also link to insufficient socialization throughout the childhood years, with a dysfunctional family institution which the child sees as “typical” that helps and leads the child to behave in a socially unacceptable manner while in the education institution, resulting in social isolation and exclusion.
As an outcome of this barring, the child will not gather and learn how to function as a productive member of society when their tenancy in the education institution has ended. They won’t be able to get or keep a job which leads them into a state of homelessness due to their incapability to make money thus causing them to rely on short-term places or live in the circumstances counter to Australian societal housing norms, such as taking up residence under a bridge or in an abandoned building.