Student Presenter(s): Aziza Swift, Jovelis Franchesca Toribio, and Brian Martinez
Faculty Mentor: Melissa Huey
School/College: Arts and Sciences, Manhattan

Homelessness is a growing epidemic in New York City. Nonetheless, homeless individuals are often disregarded, as pedestrians simply walk pass them on their commute without acknowledgement or help. Previous research suggests that aspects such as race, gender, and expressions of emotion have an impact on people’s willingness to help the homeless (Morgan et al., 1997). Our research aims to investigate specifically what physical characteristics bring out the willingness of people to interact or even donate to homeless people. We hypothesize that there are three important factors in whether or not individuals are willing to help: 1. Appearance; 2. Signage; and 3. Body Posture. After viewing one of the videos from each aforementioned factor, individuals will be asked to fill out a brief survey about their willingness to help a homeless individual. We hypothesize that individuals with clean clothes, polite signage, and those sitting upright will be the most likely to be helped. Although there aren’t many resources to help the homeless, we hope that these findings provide a better way for homeless people to present themselves in hopes of receiving the most help from their fellow New Yorkers.