A Changed America? The Effects of September 11th on Depressive Symptoms and Alcohol Consumption

In the weeks following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, social commentators argued that America had profoundly "changed." In light of these arguments and the literature on disasters, we examine the immediate and longer-term mental health consequences of September 11th using a n...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of health and social behavior 2005-09, Vol.46 (3), p.260-273
Main Authors: Knudsen, Hannah K., Roman, Paul M., Johnson, J. Aaron, Ducharme, Lori J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addictive behaviors
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Alcohol drinking
Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology
Alcohol use
Alcohols
Bachelors degrees
Biological and medical sciences
Data Collection
Depression
Depression - epidemiology
Depressive disorders
Disasters
Drinking
Female
Grief
Humans
Male
Medical sciences
Mental depression
Mental health
Miscellaneous
Mood disorders
Post traumatic stress disorder
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Social Behavior
Social impact
Substance Abuse
Terrorism
Terrorism - psychology
United States - epidemiology
Victims of Crime
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Summary:In the weeks following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, social commentators argued that America had profoundly "changed." In light of these arguments and the literature on disasters, we examine the immediate and longer-term mental health consequences of September 11th using a national sample of fulltime American workers. We model the effects of temporal proximity to the attacks on depressive symptoms and alcohol consumption, while controlling for demographic characteristics. Our data revealed a significant increase in the number of depressive symptoms reported during the 4 weeks after the attacks. In the subsequent weeks, levels of depressive symptoms returned to pre-September 11th levels. Contrary to expectations, there was some indication of decreased alcohol consumption after September 11th, although these effects were modest. These analyses provide little support for popular assertions that September 11th resulted in lasting and measurable impacts on Americans' well-being.
ISSN:0022-1465
2150-6000
DOI:10.1177/002214650504600304