Poll Analysis: Psychological Effects of Sept. 11

According to a Los Angeles Times poll taken just two months after the horrific attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, more than three-quarters of the American public say either that their lives weren’t affected by these events or their life has gotten back to normal and more than two-thirds say their personal sense of safety has not been shaken much (including 44% saying not too much).

However, a sizeable minority, 31% say their personal sense of security has been shaken a great deal or a good amount. The size of the group of Americans feeling this sense of vulnerability has not diminished that much since right after the attack. A Newsweek poll, for example, showed that 36% of Americans personally felt a lot less or somewhat less safe than they did before the attack. The further away Americans live from “Ground Zero” the loss of security isn’t felt as much as it is for people living closer to the attack. On the East Coast nearly 2 out of 5 (36%) Americans felt their safety was compromised, compared to 28% of those living on the West Coast.

It appears that there is also a sizeable group of Americans that is having a harder time adjusting to the new reality. Roughly one in five say they will likely be hurt or killed in a terrorist attack such as a building or plane bombing and one in four are convinced that they will be hurt or killed by an act of bioterrorism. More people are apprehensive about the usage of chemical warfare than by being killed in a building or plane bombing. (This poll was taken at the height of the anthrax scare.) But most of the public say it is unlikely they will be involved in such incidents--at least 7 in ten of the public say it is unlikely that they or a family member will be hurt or killed by a terrorist attack such as the one that happened on September 11th or from a bioterrorist attack, such as being infected by anthrax. Once again, Easterners are feeling more vulnerable, thinking that it is likely they will be hurt or killed by a bioterrorist attack (31%) than those living on the West coast (20%).

Business as Usual

Still, that doesn’t mean the nation believes the country will be going back to business as usual. The public is divided as to how the terrorist attacks will affect people’s daily lives, although the public is feeling more inclined to say Americans will soon be getting back to business as usual compared to right after the attack (48% believe a fundamental change and 48% believe business as usual). Two months after the horrible tragedy, more people are feeling a little more optimistic about Americans going back to their daily lives, while the pessimism felt right after the attack is dissipating. Nearly half believe that the nation will soon go back to business as usual (an increase of 9 percentage points from the last poll), while an equal share of the public believe that the terrorist attacks here at home will fundamentally change the way Americans live their lives (a decrease of 9 percentage points). Right after the attack, a Times poll found 39% of Americans thought they would soon go back to business as usual and 57% believed there would be a fundamental shift in their daily lives.

Majorities of African Americans and women (especially those younger than 45 years old) believe the events surrounding September 11th will result in a fundamental change, while men (especially those younger than 45) and the younger respondents (18-29) believe it will soon be business back to normal. People living in rural America are more upbeat than their city counterparts. Fifty-five percent of the rural public believe Americans will be getting back to their daily lives soon (40% see America having a fundamental change), compared to 47% of city dwellers who believe Americans will get back to business as usual (48% see a fundamental change). Easterners, who are more intimately associated with the events on September 11th and since, are more inclined to mention the nation will go through a fundamental change (52%) over business as usual (46%) while Westerners are split over this, but lean toward believing Americans will be able to get back to business as usual (49% vs. 45% saying there will be a fundamental change).

Life Changed

Another way to look at this is that nearly half of the public say that their life hasn’t changed since the attack, a quarter say it has changed for the better (including 7% who say a lot, 17% a little) and 17% say it has changed for the worse (including 6% who say a lot, 11% a little). Among those who say it has changed for the better, cite that they are spending more time with family, they have become more patriotic and they understand what is important to them now. And those who say it has changed for the worse mention such things as they have become more anxious or stressed out, they have developed new fears, such as flying or afraid to go out in public places and they suffered stock market losses. Interestingly, more of the younger respondents feel their life has changed--for the better--(37%) than any other age group. The reasons they cite for their positive outlook is more confidence in government, closer family ties and patriotism.

There have been articles written recently and talk shows discussing the positive affects of the attack, such as reevaluating one’s life, spending more time with family, volunteering more, finding a connection and comfort. The Times Poll asked a couple of questions pertaining to this topic and didn’t find much evidence that this is taking place over the long term. For example, three quarters of Americans have not changed the amount of time they are spending in their community volunteering or joining clubs or going to their house of worship since the attack. However, 13% say they are spending more time in their community and 2% are spending less time. Looked at another way, 20% say they had spent more time within their community after the attack, yet within that group, 7% had returned to their same level of community involvement as before the September 11th attack. Sixteen percent of those who strongly believe in their religion say they are spending more time in their community, as are 17% of women and 18% of younger respondents (18-29). In the short term, though, 7% say they had spent more time in their community, but are not doing so now.

Half of the respondents already live in the same community as their immediate family, 26% live in the same state and 22% live either outside the country or in another state. But among those who live away from their family, more than 4 out of 5 respondents have not thought about moving closer to their immediate family. Seven percent say they have already moved closer and 9% are thinking about it. One in 8 of those 18-29 year olds are thinking about moving closer.

Respondents are slightly more hopeful about their future than they are for their children’s. Almost 3 in 10 say they are more hopeful about their future since the September 11th attack, while virtually the same share are less hopeful for their children’s future. Roughly half believe those events didn’t change their perspective either for themselves or for their children. Not surprisingly, the younger respondents are less hopeful for their children than the public overall (there were only 85 respondents in this group).

The Personal Effects

The poll asked a series of questions to measure the extent of any psychological effects which may have been caused by the events of September 11th and its aftermath. Have respondents experienced any stress since the attack, are they having trouble sleeping, did they go for some counseling to help them get through this crisis and are they feeling overwhelmed to the point of being depressed, sad or overwhelmed. For the most part, the results are showing small percentages of people having a hard time getting on with their lives. Women, especially, are having the hardest time of all.

Since the attack:

* Almost a fifth of Americans say they have been depressed, sad or overwhelmed, although 75% are not. (5% say they were depressed before the attack.) Some groups are particularly feeling this way. For example, almost 3 in 10 each of women and Latinos are feeling some form of depression (compared to 12% of men, 18% of whites and 16% of African Americans who are feeling depressed).

* Two percent of the sample say they have sought counseling, while 93% are not seeing a mental health professional (3% say they went to counseling before the attack).

* Eight percent are having trouble sleeping, while 82% aren’t. (4% had trouble sleeping before the September 11th attack.) Fifteen percent of young women are having trouble falling asleep.

* More than a third are experiencing more stress in their life, 59% say they haven’t seen a change in their stress level and 6% are having less stress. More than 2 out of 5 women are having more stress (including 48% of women younger than 45), while only a quarter of men are saying their level of stress is much higher.

Fear of Flying

One more way to measure that people are trying to get on with their lives is traveling. Right after the attack, airline passengers dropped precipitously--airlines asked for and received a federal bailout (which 53% of Americans approved of). Although passenger trips are down, people are starting to book flights. (So far bookings are better than expected over the Thanksgiving holidays. Seats filled were in line with or slightly better than last year.). Nearly 3 out of 5 respondents say they have no anxiety about flying. Thirteen percent have always been uneasy about flying, but nearly 1 in 5 (17%) say their fears have gotten worse since September 11th, another 1 in 8 say they have been anxious or fearful about flying since the attack. (Unfortunately, the air crash out of JFK in New York City on November 12th has added another layer of unease for passengers. This is evident in the results shown by days of interviewing--respondents interviewed on November 12th and 13th showed a higher rate of unease in flying.) About a quarter of those living on the East Coast say their fear of flying has worsened since the September 11th attack and another 15% have become anxious about flying since that date.