Emotional and Behavioral Consequences of Bioterrorism: Planning a Public Health Response

Millions of dollars have been spent improving the public health system's bioterrorism response capabilities. Yet relatively little attention has been paid to precisely how the public will respond to bioterrorism and how emotional and behavioral responses might complicate an otherwise successful...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Milbank quarterly 2004-01, Vol.82 (3), p.413-455
Main Authors: STEIN, BRADLEY D., TANIELIAN, TERRI L., EISENMAN, DAVID P., KEYSER, DONNA J., BURNAM, M. AUDREY, PINCUS, HAROLD A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anthrax
Anxiety
Behavior (psychology)
Behavioural responses
Biological & chemical terrorism
Biological weapons
Bioterrorism
Bioterrorism - psychology
Bombings
Counterterrorism
Defenses
Disaster Planning
Emergency preparedness
Emotional distress
Emotional expression
Emotional responses
Fear
General studies
Government
Humans
Internal security
Interviews as Topic
Mass Behavior
Original
Post traumatic stress disorder
Psychological aspects
Psychological stress
Public health
Public Health Practice
Rescue Work
Risk Assessment
Scenario planning
Social impact
Social organization. Social system. Social structure
Social Support
Sociology
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
Terrorism
United States
USA
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Description
Summary:Millions of dollars have been spent improving the public health system's bioterrorism response capabilities. Yet relatively little attention has been paid to precisely how the public will respond to bioterrorism and how emotional and behavioral responses might complicate an otherwise successful response. This article synthesizes the available evidence about the likely emotional and behavioral consequences of bioterrorism to suggest what decision makers can do now to improve that response. It examines the emotional and behavioral impact of previous "bioterrorism-like" events and summarizes interviews with experts who have responded to such events or conducted research on the effects of community wide disasters. The article concludes by reflecting on the evidence and experts' perspectives to suggest actions to be taken now and future policy and research priorities.
ISSN:0887-378X
1468-0009
DOI:10.1111/j.0887-378X.2004.00317.x