Active Listening

Active listening is a part of a model which suspends judgment and, instead, allows another person to begin to work on their own internal dialogue about their trauma. With homelessness, trauma is often both complex and complicated; complex in that it involves several touch-points, complicated because often the economic trauma is not named within a neoliberal framework (e.g. a person is "evicted," the term is legalistic and does not acknowledge their emotional condition).

As a preliminary to building trust, active listening awaits to hear about a narrative similar to forms of chaplaincy used in other settings (e.g. hospitals, hospice). Active listening is a subset within resilience based (trauma informed), "whole person" care.