The Right to a Home: Housing Strategies and Social Inclusion of Unaccompanied Foreign Minors and Youth Foreigners
Published 2026-08-04
Keywords
- unaccompanied foreign minors,
- young adults,
- housing,
- social inclusion
How to Cite
Copyright (c) 2026 Giuseppina Tumminelli

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Abstract
In the current social landscape, the housing dimension constitutes one of the most decisive variables in defining social hierarchies and stratification processes. Access to stable housing is not merely the satisfaction of a primary need; it represents a crucial node in welfare policies and urban planning. When this dimension intersects with the trajectories of human mobility, it becomes a priority indicator for measuring the effectiveness of integration pathways, revealing the structural barriers that migrant subjects are forced to confront. Although a progressive trend toward settlement can be observed among the foreign population, capable of triggering transformation processes in urban spaces, the housing market remains a domain characterized by profound asymmetries and conflict. Indeed, the availability of accommodation acts directly upon an individual’s social status and the quality of interactions with the host community, influencing the dynamics of acceptance and reciprocity. Drawing on the results of an exploratory study conducted in the metropolitan area of Palermo, this contribution aims to offer a reflection on the situation of unaccompanied foreign minors leaving the reception system upon reaching the age of majority, and on the possible housing strategies undertaken (such as transitional apartments, co-housing, and Housing First).
References
- Barnao C. (2004), Sopravvivere in strada. Elementi di sociologia della persona senza dimora, FrancoAngeli, Milano.
- Bergamaschi M. (ed.) (2022), The multidimensional housing deprivation. Local dynamics of inequality, policies and challenges for the future, FrancoAngeli, Milano.
- Bichi R. and Bonini E. (2021), «La transizione all’età adulta dei minori stranieri non accompagnati in Italia», in Studi di Sociologia, X: 1-18, https://doi.org/10.26350/000309_000107.
- Bourdieu P. (1993), The Field of Cultural Production: Essays on Art and Literature, Columbia University Press, New York.
- Brandolini A., Saraceno C. and Schizzerotto A. (2009), Dimensioni della disuguaglianza in Italia: povertà, salute e abitazione, Il Mulino, Bologna.
- Cardano M. (2011), La ricerca qualitativa, Il Mulino, Bologna.
- Consoli T. and Meo A. (2020), Homelessness in Italia. Biografie, territori, politiche, FrancoAngeli, Milano.
- Corbetta P. (1999), Metodologia e tecniche della ricerca sociale, Il Mulino, Bologna.
- Cortese C. (ed.) (2017), Scenari e pratiche dell’Housing First. Una nuova via dell’accoglienza per la grave emarginazione adulta in Italia. FrancoAngeli, Milano.
- D’Agostino M. (2020), «Città responsabili. Pratiche e politiche per accogliere diversamente», in T. Consoli e A. Meo (eds.), Homelessness in Italia. Biografie, territori, politiche, FrancoAngeli, Milano, pp. 151-166.
- fio.PSD (2006), Grave emarginazione e interventi di rete. Strategie e opportunità di cambiamento, FrancoAngeli, Milano.
- Goffman E. (1963), Stigma. Notes on the management of spoiled identity, Simon and Schuster, New York.
- IOM (2020), World Migration Report 2020, https://publications.iom.int/system/files/pdf/wmr_2020-1.pdf.
- Kabachnik P., Regulska J. and Mitchneck B. (2010), «Where and When is Home? The Double Displacement of Georgian IDPs from Abkhazia», in Journal of Refugee Studies, 23(3): 315-336, https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/feq023.
- Meo A. (2009), «Vivere in strada: carriere di povertà e pratiche di sopravvivenza. Uno sguardo sociologico sui senza dimora», in R. Gnocchi (eds.), Homelessness e dialogo interdisciplinare, Carocci, Roma, pp. 183-214.
- Molinari P. and Zenarolla A. (2018), Prima la casa. La sperimentazione Housing First in Italia, FrancoAngeli, Milano.
- Pleace N. (2016), «Utilizzare l’Housing First in Europa», in C. Cortese (eds.), Scenari e pratiche dell’Housing First. Una nuova via dell’accoglienza per la grave emarginazione adulta in Italia, FrancoAngeli, Milano.
- Tosi A. (2017), Le case dei poveri: è ancora possibile pensare un welfare abitativo?, Mimesis, Milano.
- Tsemberis S. and Eisenberg R.F. (2000), «Pathways to Housing: Supported Housing for Street-Dwelling Homeless Individuals With Psychiatric Disabilities», in Psychiatric Services, 51(4): 487-493, https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.51.4.487.
- Tsemberis S. (2010), Housing First: The Pathways Model to End Homelessness for People with Mental Illness and Addiction, Hazelden, Minnesota.
- Tsemberis S., Gulcur L. and Nakae M. (2004), «Housing First, Consumer Choice, and Harm Reduction for Homeless Individuals With a Dual Diagnosis», in American Journal of Public Health, 94(4): 651-656, https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.94.4.651.
- Tumminelli G. (2024), «Housing First: A System for Combatting Marginality», in F. Lo Piccolo., G. Paternostro., V. Todaro and A. Mangiaracina (eds.), In and out: rights of migrants in the European space, Springer, Cham, pp. 67-77.
- UNICEF, Médecins du Monde (2018), Enea. Manuale operativo per la presa in carico psicosociale dei minori stranieri non accompagnati, https://issuu.com/medecinsdumonde/docs/enea-manua-le_operativo.
- Van Gennep A. (1909), The Rites of Passage, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
- Vanclay F., Baines J. T. and Taylor C.N. (2013), «Principles for ethical research involving humans: ethical professional practice in impact assessment Part I», in Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, 31(4): 243-253, https://doi.org/10.1080/14615517.2013.850307.