Social and psychological resources and health outcomes after the World Trade Center disaster

Abstract

Previous studies on community disasters tend to assess non-representative samples and use nonstandard measures of well-being. Additionally, few of these studies are longitudinal in design. In this report, we examine the consequences of the World Trade Center Disaster (WTCD) within a stress model perspective to assess level of exposure to the disaster and well-being after this event, as measured by the SF12 mental health and physical health scales. Data come from a two-wave panel study of 1681 English or Spanish speaking adults living in New York City on the day of the terrorist attacks and were collected by telephone interviews 1 and 2 years after the disaster. In ordinary leastsquares regression models that contained demographic characteristics, stress risk factors, and social psychological resources as independent variables, level of exposure to the disaster was associated with poorer Wave 2 physical well-being, but not psychological health. Level of disaster exposure was not related to Wave 2 physical health, however, once the Wave 1 level of physical health was controlled, suggesting that disaster exposure did not have a lasting impact on variation in physical well-being. Results also indicated that experiencing a panic attack, negative life events, or traumatic events were related to poorer physical health. Respondents who met screening criteria for possible alcohol dependence post-disaster, experienced negative life events, or experienced traumatic events, were more likely to suffer from poorer mental health compared to those who did not meet the criteria, experience negative life events or experience traumas. We discuss these findings relative to community disasters in industrialized and developing countries.

Mental illness and suicidality after Hurricane Katrina

“…34,35 The sociodemographic correlates are also largely consistent with previous rea a search. 36,37 That the associations among sociodemographic correlates were largely the same across the samples suggests that the adverse mental health effects of Hura a ricane Katrina were equally distributed across broad segments of the population. Although an analysis of treatment pata a terns goes well beyond the scope of this report, these results document a high and widely dispersed need for mental health treatment.…”

Predictors of PTSD and Delayed PTSD After Disaster

“…In addition, demographic weights also were used for Y2 data in order adjust for slight differences in response rates by different demographic groups, a common practice in panel surveys (Kessler et al, 1995a). With these adjustments, both waves could be treated as a random, representative sample of NYC adults who were also living in NYC on the day of the WTCD (Adams et al, 2006). …”

Perceived risk of HIV infection and mental health in rural Malawi

“…A higher summary score suggests better mental well-being. This instrument has been proven to have high validity and test-retest reliability and is widely used across different countries and populations, including sub-Saharan Africa (Adams, Boscarino, and Galea 2006;Gandek et al 1998;Jenkinson et al 1997;Trivedi et al 2008;Ware Jr., Kosinski, and Keller 1996).…”