Miracle friends and miracle money in California: a mixed-methods experiment of social support and guaranteed income for people experiencing homelessness.

Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 101263253 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1745-6215 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 17456215 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Trials Subsets: MEDLINE

Original Publication: [London] : BioMed Central, 2006-

Ill-Housed Persons*/psychology ; Social Isolation* ; Income* ; Loneliness* ; Social Support*; Humans ; California ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Time Factors ; Poverty ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Friends ; Middle Aged ; Volunteers/psychology

Background: This paper describes the protocols for a randomized controlled trial using a parallel-group trial design that includes an intervention designed to address social isolation and loneliness among people experiencing homelessness known as Miracle Friends and an intervention that combines Miracles Friends with an economic poverty-reduction intervention known as Miracle Money. Miracle Friends pairs an unhoused person with a volunteer "phone buddy." Miracle Money provides guaranteed basic income of $750 per month for 1 year to Miracle Friends participants. The study will examine whether either intervention reduces social isolation or homelessness compared to a waitlist control group.
Methods: Unhoused individuals who expressed interest in the Miracle Friends program were randomized to either receive the intervention or be placed on a waitlist for Miracle Friends. Among those randomized to receive the Miracle Friends intervention, randomization also determined whether they would be offered Miracle Money. The possibility of receiving basic income was only disclosed to study participants if they were randomly selected and participated in the Miracle Friends program. All study participants, regardless of assignment, were surveyed every 3 months for 15 months.
Results: Of 760 unhoused individuals enrolled in the study, 256 were randomized to receive Miracle Friends, 267 were randomized to receive Miracle Money, and 237 were randomized to the waitlist control group. In the two intervention groups, 360 of 523 unhoused individuals were initially matched to a phone buddy. Of the 191 study participants in the Miracle Money group who had been initially matched to a volunteer phone buddy, 103 were deemed to be participating in the program and began receiving monthly income.
Discussion: This randomized controlled trial will determine whether innovative interventions involving volunteer phone support and basic income reduce social isolation and improve housing outcomes for people experiencing homelessness. Although we enrolled unhoused individuals who initially expressed interest in the Miracle Friends program, the study team could not reach approximately 30% of individuals referred to the study. This may reflect the general lack of stability in the lives of people who are unhoused or limitations in the appeal of such a program to some portion of the unhoused population.
Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05408884 (first submitted on May 26, 2022).
(© 2024. The Author(s).)

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Keywords: Basic income; Cash transfers; Community integration; Guaranteed income; Homelessness; Isolation; Loneliness; Randomized controlled trial; Relational poverty; Social support

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05408884

Date Created: 20240429 Date Completed: 20240430 Latest Revision: 20240522

20240523

PMC11059706

10.1186/s13063-024-08109-6

38685123