Hurricane Katrina Survivors Research Articles

Compassion organizing: Employees' satisfaction with corporate philanthropic disaster response and reduced job strain

The literature on corporate social responsibility and corporate philanthropy generally focuses on how employers come to the aid of those outside the organization who have been affected by disasters. Less is known about an organization's corporate philanthropic disaster response (CPDR) directed towards their employees. We argue, based on conservation of resources (Hobfoll, 1989, Am. Psychol., 44, 513) and compassion organizing (Dutton et al., 2006, Admin. Sci. Quart., 51, 59) literatures, that employees perceive employers who provide aid to them following a natural disaster as supportive. This aid from CPDR provides support to employees and helps to restore the loss of valued resources. Accordingly, we predict that satisfaction with CPDR reduces employee psychological and physiological strain via its positive effects on perceived organizational support. We find support for our predictions using a sample of 695 Hurricane Katrina survivors. Finally, we discussed theoretical contributions and implications of this research.Practitioner points Organizations are encouraged to fulfil their social responsibilities. Our research shows that organizations should be socially responsible not only to the general public, but also to their own employees. Responding compassionately by providing aid to an organization's own employees is an important element in carrying out their social responsibilities. In the aftermath of a severe natural disaster, employees may need to rely on their organizations to provide timely assistance. Such assistance could help them mitigate their strain, both psychologically and physiologically, aroused from the disaster they experienced. Organizations' compassion organizing in the form of philanthropic disaster response to their employees may be beneficial to the organization. First, it shows the organization's intention to fulfil their social responsibility and to be a good and ethical citizen. Second, by providing assistance to their employees to deal with the challenge of restoring normal lives, organizations can help employees to continue working in a productive and effective way.

Community Disasters and Shared Trauma: Implications of Listening to Co-Survivor Narratives

Shared trauma produces a unique dynamic in survivor–social supporter interactions because survivors may simultaneously act as support providers. We investigated people's reactions to simulated co-survivors’ trauma narratives and hypothesized that the narrator's vocal distress would result in agitation and that posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms would moderate this relationship. Eighty-four Hurricane Katrina survivors reported their mental health, listened to an ostensible co-survivor's trauma narrative, and reported their distress. When the narrator sounded distraught rather than recovered, people with higher PTS symptoms were increasingly reactive. Results provide preliminary evidence that interactions centered on disaster experiences may create distress rather than foster recovery.

Urban sprawl and body mass index among displaced Hurricane Katrina survivors

ObjectiveExisting research suggests that walkable environments are protective against weight gain, while sprawling neighborhoods may pose health risks. Using prospective data on displaced Hurricane Katrina survivors, we provide the first natural experimental data on sprawl and body mass index (BMI). MethodsThe analysis uses prospectively collected pre- (2003–2005) and post-hurricane (2006–2007) data from the Resilience in Survivors of Katrina (RISK) project on 280 displaced Hurricane Katrina survivors who had little control over their neighborhood placement immediately after the disaster. The county sprawl index, a standardized measure of built environment, was used to predict BMI at follow-up, adjusted for baseline BMI and sprawl; hurricane-related trauma; and demographic and economic characteristics. ResultsRespondents from 8 New Orleans-area counties were dispersed to 76 counties post-Katrina. Sprawl increased by an average of 1.5 standard deviations (30 points) on the county sprawl index. Each one point increase in sprawl was associated with approximately .05kg/m2 higher BMI in unadjusted models (95%CI: .01–.08), and the relationship was not attenuated after covariate adjustment. ConclusionsWe find a robust association between residence in a sprawling county and higher BMI unlikely to be caused by self-selection into neighborhoods, suggesting that the built environment may foster changes in weight.

Measuring Exposure in Hurricane Katrina: A Meta-Analysis and an Integrative Data Analysis

To date there is no consensus on the operationalization of exposure severity in the study of the impact of natural disasters. This is problematic because incomplete and inconsistent measurement of exposure limits the internal and external validity of disaster studies. The current paper examined the predictive validity of severity measures in two interrelated studies of Hurricane Katrina survivors. First, in a meta-analysis of eight studies that measured both exposure severity and posttraumatic stress, the effect size was estimated to be r = .266. The moderating effects of sample and study characteristics were examined and we found that minority status and number of stressors assessed were significant moderators. Second, in an integrative data analysis of five independent samples of Hurricane Katrina survivors, the impact of specific disaster-related stressors on mental health was compared. Threat to physical integrity of self and others were found to have the strongest association with posttraumatic stress (PTS) and general psychological distress (GPD). The lack of basic necessities, such as food, water, and medical care, and loss of pet were also found to be strongly associated with both PTS and GPD. The results from the two studies are integrated and their implication for disaster research and relief are discussed.

The virtuous circle in disaster recovery: who returns and stays in town after disaster evacuation?

Given the importance of encouraging residents of a disaster-stricken community to remain there during the recovery process, this paper examines the determinants of disaster evacuee decisions to return to their communities, and if they return, to stay in the community where they lived before the disaster. The data come from two panel surveys of Hurricane Katrina survivors. The surveys were taken in 2005, just after Katrina, and again in 2006, a year after the disaster. Although the study sample is not indicative of the pre-Katrina population of New Orleans, it is of great value in allowing us to understand the behaviors of disaster survivors and in helping to design disaster recovery plans. Analytical results show that government performance in initial disaster recovery and individual perceptions of future lives in the community play an important role in evacuees’ decisions of whether to stay in the pre-Katrina communities. Race, risk, and damage done are also valid predictors of return decisions. This finding emphasizes the importance of both governmental initial response to the disaster and effective communication of a clear vision toward a fully recovered community.

Social Policy, “Deservingness,” and Sociotemporal Marginalization: Katrina Survivors and FEMA

Limiting assistance in the context of the neoliberal U.S. welfare state relies on a distinction between the deserving and undeserving poor. Hurricane Katrina survivors were caught between two opposing cultural characterizations—”deserving” disaster victims and “undeserving” welfare cheats. In this article, I examine Hurricane Katrina survivors' experiences with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)'s rental assistance policies and practices, as their experiences reveal important aspects of how aid is allocated in the context of the contemporary U.S. welfare state, and what consequences this has for marginalized populations. I analyze in‐depth interviews and field observations with displaced Katrina survivors and find that FEMA policies and practices assumed a “middle class” model of family structure and economic standing. Those who did not fit into this model were made to wait while their cases were investigated, which had negative psychological and material consequences. I argue that being made to wait, or temporal domination, is a central component of the larger sociotemporal marginalization of the poor, or the way in which time structures social stratification. Temporal domination is a feature of neoliberal social policy, neither maliciously intended nor entirely unintended, that has the consequence of punishing the “undeserving.”

Association of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Depression With All-Cause and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality and Hospitalization Among Hurricane Katrina Survivors With End-Stage Renal Disease

We determined the association of psychiatric symptoms in the year after Hurricane Katrina with subsequent hospitalization and mortality in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. A prospective cohort of ESRD patients (n = 391) treated at 9 hemodialysis centers in the New Orleans, Louisiana, area in the weeks before Hurricane Katrina were assessed for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression symptoms via telephone interview 9 to 15 months later. Two combined outcomes through August 2009 (maximum 3.5-year follow-up) were analyzed: (1) all-cause and (2) cardiovascular-related hospitalization and mortality. Twenty-four percent of participants screened positive for PTSD and 46% for depression; 158 participants died (79 cardiovascular deaths), and 280 participants were hospitalized (167 for cardiovascular-related causes). Positive depression screening was associated with 33% higher risk of all-cause (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.33; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.06, 1.66) and cardiovascular-related hospitalization and mortality (HR = 1.33; 95% CI = 1.01, 1.76). PTSD was not significantly associated with either outcome. Depression in the year after Hurricane Katrina was associated with increased risk of hospitalization and mortality in ESRD patients, underscoring the long-term consequences of natural disasters for vulnerable populations.

Religion, Spirituality, and Trauma: An Introduction

Current research trends suggest that about half of all people will experience directly, or vicariously, some form of trauma over the course of their lifespan. Recent societal events, such as high profile child abuse cases and scandals, increased rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide rates among returning veterans, and some of the worst natural disasters recorded in history have brought greater attention to issues of trauma. With this have come several advances in our understanding and treatment of trauma. As a result, this area of study has seen an increase in the diversity of topics investigated and sophistication of research methodologies implored. Despite these significant gains, there is still much to be learned about the unique role of religion and spirituality in relation to trauma. Thus, the purpose of this special issue is to contribute to this burgeoning body of literature. Before describing the work contained in the pages that follow, we briefly share some background about where our interest and work on faith and trauma began. This special volume has evolved out of our shared professional and personal experiences. Both of us, at different times in our personal and professional lives have been deeply moved by first-hand accounts of trauma. I (Aten) had just finished graduate school and had moved to South Mississippi to start my first academic appointment. Little did I know that Hurricane Katrina would strike the Gulf Coast just six days later. I saw first hand how devastating and far-reaching trauma can be. Perhaps even more importantly, I saw first hand how the church cared for trauma survivors and how faith helped bring about meaning and recovery to survivors. Within two months my research team had completed our first study on religion and trauma among Hurricane Katrina survivors. It was these early experiences after Hurricane Katrina--and years that followed of living in, studying, and working with communities affected by this disaster--that has led me to continue this work in other regions domestically and internationally, and ultimately to my involvement in this special volume. One of us (Walker) was working on a child abuse treatment team in a secular community mental health center near his hometown in Canton, Ohio for his predoctoral internship. I (Walker) remember working on a Child Abuse Treatment Team that year, and seeing a client who had been beaten to the point that he had broken bones. I was horrified, and shocked to learn that a child, living twenty minutes from where I had grown up, had been treated this way by his family. In attempting to help another child client to process his reactions to his abusive experience, I once asked him if he had talked to God about what had happened. The client responded by saying that he was not sure that God could help. In that moment, I realized that nothing in the course of study in my PhD, my theology degree, or my integrative training had adequately prepared me for how to respond. I have since spent a good deal of my professional life trying to understand the process of healing from child abuse from the perspective of survivors and their therapists. …

Recovering home: Hurricane Katrina survivors rebuild homes in a digital community

Abstract This article responds to the following questions: how are homes and a sense of community recreated through Hurricane Digital Memory Bank (HDMB) writing for Hurricane Katrina survivors, and perhaps more importantly how does the act of writing demonstrate a facilitated recovery from trauma? Specifically, the article explains the HDMB’s mission and my use of its ‘stories’. This article also conceptualizes writing about home and definitions of place as they relate to home, but focuses most of its theoretical attention on trauma, writing and healing. The article also introduces and explains my theory of relocution and how it bears on the research. Finally, this article shares writings about home posted on the HDMB by Katrina survivors and connects them explicitly with trauma and writing theory concerned with recovery or healing.

Social Support, Mood, and Resiliency Following a Peruvian Natural Disaster

The intent of this research project was to collect data from individuals in Vina Vieja, Peru, who experienced a devastating earthquake in 2007 and two subsequent earthquakes in 2010. Collected in June 2010, these data for 35 individuals were analyzed using independent sample t tests and qualitative theme analysis. When added to findings from a previous study of Hurricane Katrina survivors in 2006, the present research about the Peruvian experience in Vina Vieja fills a conceptual gap pertaining to understanding factors that predict resiliency among survivors of natural disasters. It is part of an ongoing interdisciplinary research project that seeks to understand how resilience is experienced within and across cultures and to create a conceptual framework for resilience.

The disaster continues: A qualitative study on the experiences of displaced Hurricane Katrina survivors.

Disaster survivors have not only experienced a tragedy, but they may also have been simultaneouslydisplaced to places usually unfamiliar to them. What does being displaced mean in terms of survivors’experiences? This qualitative study explored, through in-depth interviews, the experiences of ninedisplaced Hurricane Katrina (HK) survivors. Using critical theory as a framework, our intent was todescribe the experiences before, during, and after HK of displaced survivors who sought disaster reliefaid from a social services agency in a city in southeastern United States. A consensual qualitativeresearch (CQR) analysis (Hill et al., 2005) yielded four domains: (a) Life before HK, (b) preparing forthe storm, (c) losses after HK, and (d) consequences of being displaced. For these nine participants, lifebefore HK was fraught with family conditions of poverty, substance abuse, and criminal arrest. Inpreparing for the storm, participants made the decision to stay or evacuate, depending on their contextsand available resources. Losses after HK included lives, shelter, employment, belongings, safety, andcommunity. Consequences of being displaced included financial hardship, the fight for resources, loss oftrust and faith in government, inadequate health care, strained relationships with family or friends, andseparation from community. Displacement after the storm resulted in more vulnerability and the loss ofa cultural community, which had been the participants’ main source of support. These results underscorehow practitioners and policymakers need to consider how culturally different the survivors’ home wasfrom where they were relocated.Keywords: disaster preparedness and planning, Hurricane Katrina, displacement, disaster stress andcoping, qualitative study

Exploring Resiliency Factors of Older African American Katrina Survivors

Through this qualitative study the author explores the resiliency processes demonstrated by older African American Hurricane Katrina survivors who relocated in the aftermath of the storm and were consequently faced with difficult challenges. In-depth interviews were used to assess the multidimensional characteristics of resiliency that enabled these older adults to deal with adversity. These findings highlight distinct processes reflecting resiliency: (a) Trusting in a higher power, and the importance of (b) living in the present, (c) activating resources, (d) creating community, and (e) doing for others. The author concludes this study with suggestions on how these findings may inform social work practice with older adults.

What can multiwave studies teach us about disaster research: An analysis of low‐income Hurricane Katrina survivors

Previous research on natural disasters has been limited by a lack of predisaster data and statistical analyses that do not adequately predict change in psychological symptoms. In the current study, we addressed these limitations through analysis of 3 waves of data from a longitudinal investigation of 313 low-income, African American mothers who were exposed to Hurricane Katrina. Although postdisaster cross-sectional estimates of the impact of traumatic stress exposure and postdisaster social support on postdisaster psychological distress were somewhat inflated, the general trends persisted when controlling for predisaster data (B = 0.88 and -0.33, vs. B = 0.81 and -0.27, respectively). Hierarchical linear modeling of the 3 waves of data revealed that lower predisaster social support was associated with higher psychological distress at the time of the disaster (β = -.16), and that higher traumatic stress exposure was associated with greater increases in psychological distress after the storm (β = .86). Based on the results, we suggest that the impact of traumatic stress on psychological trajectories cannot be accounted for solely by preexisting risk, and recommend more complex research designs to further illuminate the complex, dynamic relationships between psychological distress, traumatic stress exposure, and social support.

Listening to and Learning from Older Adult Hurricane Katrina Survivors

The objective of this pilot study was to explore how Hurricane Katrina affected older adult disaster survivors. Participants for this descriptive exploratory pilot study were recruited from churches and senior centers on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. Of the 224 participants, one hundred provided additional comments at the end of a forced-response questionnaire. Manifest content analysis was used to examine the participants' comments by identifying, coding, and categorizing their responses to the open-ended question. The codes were based on conditions and behaviors that might be exhibited by disaster victims. Themed categories were losses and needs, giving advice, justification for continuing to live in this disaster-prone region, deterrents and facilitators of home evacuation, spirituality and faith, manageability, bereavement, grief, anger, and natural debriefing. The strongest message of these survivors was the need to be heard by public health nurses, other public health officials preparing for disasters, and those in positions to render aid.

Five years later: Recovery from post traumatic stress and psychological distress among low-income mothers affected by Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina, which struck the Gulf Coast of the United States in August 2005, exposed area residents to trauma and extensive property loss. However, little is known about the long-run effects of the hurricane on the mental health of those who were exposed. This study documents long-run changes in mental health among a particularly vulnerable group—low income mothers—from before to after the hurricane, and identifies factors that are associated with different recovery trajectories. Longitudinal surveys of 532 low-income mothers from New Orleans were conducted approximately one year before, 7–19 months after, and 43–54 months after Hurricane Katrina. The surveys collected information on mental health, social support, earnings and hurricane experiences. We document changes in post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), as measured by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised, and symptoms of psychological distress (PD), as measured by the K6 scale. We find that although PTSS has declined over time after the hurricane, it remained high 43–54 months later. PD also declined, but did not return to pre-hurricane levels. At both time periods, psychological distress before the hurricane, hurricane-related home damage, and exposure to traumatic events were associated with PTSS that co-occurred with PD. Hurricane-related home damage and traumatic events were associated with PTSS without PD. Home damage was an especially important predictor of chronic PTSS, with and without PD. Most hurricane stressors did not have strong associations with PD alone over the short or long run. Over the long run, higher earnings were protective against PD, and greater social support was protective against PTSS. These results indicate that mental health problems, particularly PTSS alone or in co-occurrence with PD, among Hurricane Katrina survivors remain a concern, especially for those who experienced hurricane-related trauma and had poor mental health or low socioeconomic status before the hurricane.

Sleep fears, sleep disturbance, and PTSD symptoms in minority youth exposed to Hurricane Katrina

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common following the experience of a natural disaster and sleep disturbance is an important influence on its course in adults, but little research is available examining sleep and PTSD in youths. This study's objective was to evaluate the role of sleep disturbance and the developmentally influenced factor of fear of sleeping alone in the maintenance of posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms in youths. Deidentified data of 191 Hurricane Katrina survivors ages 8 to 15 were used in this study. We found cross-sectional relationships of sleep disturbance and fear of sleeping alone with PTS symptom severity. Longitudinal analysis also indicated that general sleep disturbance at 24 months (T1) was predictive of PTS symptoms severity at 30 months (T2) even after adjusting for PTS symptom severity at T1, age, sex, and continued disrepair to the home. These results have implications for intervention strategies among youth exposed to traumatic events.

Stress and Support in Family Relationships After Hurricane Katrina

In this article, the authors merge the study of support, strain, and ambivalence in family relationships with the study of stress to explore the ways family members provide support or contribute to strain in the disaster recovery process. The authors analyze interviews with 71 displaced Hurricane Katrina survivors, and identify three family relationships that were especially important to postdisplacement experiences: marital or intimate partner, parent–adult child, and fictive kin. These relationships provided support, contributed to strain, or did both, highlighting the complexity of such relationships in the postdisaster context. Women tended to provide more support to and receive more support from family relationships than did men, especially through mother–adult daughter relationships.

Spirituality and Faith-Based Interventions: Pathways to Disaster Resilience for African American Hurricane Katrina Survivors

Research has shown that spirituality and religion are important sources of resilience and coping in adversity such as disasters, particularly for African Americans. In addition, churches and faith-based service providers are key actors in disaster relief and recovery. After Hurricane Katrina, research on survivors has focused little on the role of spirituality and religion in their recovery. This case study illustrates that even without soliciting it, survivors who evacuated to a host city talked about the importance of spirituality and religion in their recovery process. Further, interviews and observations with local service providers illustrate that few practitioners utilized spirituality or religion as a resource and that coordination between faith-based and secular service providers was problematic. Our research highlights a neglected area of cultural competence for those providing services to Katrina survivors. We discuss the implications for social work policy and practice.

Oral history for the qualitative researcher: choreographing the story

Part 1. Order. Reinventing Oral History for the Qualitative Researcher. Introduction. Oral History Evolving and a Work in Progress. Mnemosyne, Goddess of Memory. Why Oral History Now? Sorting Out Oral Traditions. Perspectives. Oral History as a Social Justice Project. On the Critical Importance of Testimony as Oral History. Summary. Part 2. Design and Tension. The Tools of the Oral Historian: The Choreography of Techniques and Issues. Introduction. Interviewing as a Creative Act of the Imagination. Oral History Interviewing. Types of Interview Questions. Preparing Questions. About Phone Interviews. Some Interviewing Rules of Thumb from the Interviewer's Point of View. Perennial Ethical Issues for the Interviewer. Analyzing and Interpreting Oral History Interview Data. Journal Writing for the Oral Historian and for the Narrator. Documents as Data. Documents, Artifacts, and Photographs to Augment Oral History Reports. Summary. Part 3. Balance and Composition. Becoming an Oral Historian. Introduction. Writing Up the Narrative. The Researcher's Reflexive Journal. Using Poetry in Oral History to Represent Someone's Story. The Potential and Eloquence of the Narrative in Digital Storytelling. Internet Inquiry, the Wiki World, and Copyleft Agreements for Oral Historians and Qualitative Researchers. Finding Models of Digital Oral History Using Tools of the Web. Awareness of Ethical and Legal Issues. Putting Some Pieces Together: Crafting an Oral History Report. Summary. Part 4. Harmony. The Art of Making Sense of Oral History Projects with a Choreography of Social Justice. Introduction. Why I Do Oral History. Hawkins's Theory of Dance, Experience, and Art. Final Reflections. Appendices: A. Selected Electronic Resources: Websites and Listservs for the Oral Historian. B. Selected Oral History Centers, Archives, and Collections. C. Selected Journals That Publish Oral Histories and Related Issues. D. Sample Consent Form for Project Undergoing IRB Review. E. Basic Contract (Sample). F. Federal Statement on Oral History. G. Statement on IRBs from the American Historical Association (Edited). H. List of Choreographers Used for Surnames of Participants. I. Practicing the Techniques of Oral History: Strategies and Activities to Sharpen Your Writing Skills. J. Excerpt from an Oral History of a 9/11 Firefighter. K. Excerpt from an Oral History of Hurricane Katrina Survivors. L. Example of a Nonparticipant Observation Assignment to Develop Observation Skills. M. A Sample Rubric Assessing Writing. N. Interview Project Assignment. O. Example of a Qualitative Research Methods Syllabus. P. An Excerpt of a Transcript (Edited) from an Interview with Jane A. de Mille. Q. Digital Equipment for the Oral Historian.

Examining the Long-Term Racial Disparities in Health and Economic Conditions Among Hurricane Katrina Survivors: Policy Implications for Gulf Coast Recovery

This study examines disparities in the long-term health, emotional well-being, and economic consequences of the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes. Researchers analyzed the responses of 216 Black and 508 White Hurricane Katrina survivors who participated in the ABC News Hurricane Katrina Anniversary Poll in 2006. Self-reported data of the long-term negative impact of the hurricane on personal health, emotional well-being, and finances were regressed on race, income, and measures of loss, injury, family mortality, anxiety, and confidence in the government. Descriptive analyses, stepwise logistic regression, and analyses of variance revealed that Black hurricane survivors more frequently reported hurricane-related problems with personal health, emotional well-being, and finances. In addition, Blacks were more likely than Whites to report the loss of friends, relatives, and personal property.