The reciprocal social change: stories of people experiencing homelessness and social workers relationship

Any relationship needs reciprocity to exist; even asymmetrical ones rely on inequality to enable exchange and shape interaction. This paper explores reciprocity within helping relationships between people experiencing homelessness and social workers, arguing that it is precisely the inequality that enables exchange between parties and generates transformative change. Despite this, research has rarely addressed how people experiencing homelessness themselves can influence and transform social work practice. Typically, marginalised individuals are seen as powerless recipients, while social workers’ roles are framed as facilitating empowerment and social recognition. Interpreting helping relationships through reciprocity suggests that social change is more likely when both parties can give and receive, even within asymmetrical dynamics, highlighting the transformative potential of marginality for social work itself. This article presents findings from a 13-month ethnographic study in a medium-sized city in southern Italy (2018–2020), combining organisational and urban ethnography with qualitative social network analysis. The study involved 58 people experiencing homelessness, 42 social workers, 13 citizens, through ethnographic observations, in-depth interviews, and life stories. The analysis of relational stories yielded a tentative typology of helping relationships and raised questions about whether social policies, social work practice, and research are ready to be transformed through engagement with marginality.