Temporal agency in homelessness

The segmentation and de-segmentation of time

Dados Bibliográficos

ID4356451
AutoresAndrew Burns (0000-0001-6868-9615, College of Social Sciences, The University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK, autor correspondente)
Ano2025
Data de publicação2025-07-22
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoTime & Society (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0961-463X • E-ISSN: 1461-7463
EditoraSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0961463x251360464
OpenAlexW4412551588
IdiomaEN
Referências citadas24

Some scholars have argued that those affected by 'existential' forms of waiting and boredom lack agency, that they lack the capacity to act. This paper seeks to counter these ideas by focussing on the relationships between time and agency in homelessness. Using data drawn from ethnographic fieldwork in Glasgow, Scotland, it shows the ways in which participants used different tactics and strategies to manage their experiences of time and argues that these constitute forms of temporal agency. Even in situations of temporal confinement, people act, and their actions are temporally orientated. Using examples from the field of homelessness, this paper contributes to the debate about the relationships that exist between time and agency. It introduces the idea that the segmentation and de-segmentation of time, through a range of means, can be used as agentic ways of actively managing the experiences of existential waiting and existential boredom, respectively. While acknowledging the impact of social structures on those who experience homelessness, it argues that recognising and respecting the agency of individuals, and the ways in which they exercise it within these circumscribing structures, can deepen our understanding of how time and agency interact. Moreover, this understanding can be used to improve policy and practice by better contextualising the actions of those impacted by social structures

Agency (philosophy · Segmentation · Social science · Sociology · Computer Science · Homelessness and Social Issues · Place Attachment and Urban Studies · Psychology · Urban Planning and Governance · Artificial Intelligence