HOW AMERICA RESPONDED: Public Opinion after 9/11/01 Michael W. Traugott Robert M. Groves Courtney Kennedy The University of Michigan 57 th Annual AAPOR Conference May 17, 2002 St. Pete Beach, FL

MAIN HYPOTHESES H: Symptoms of stress would increase in both the short and longer term H: Support for restrictions in civil liberties would increase in exchange for greater personal security. These attitudes would be sustained until perceived safety and security returned H: Stereotyping of minority groups would increase, especially for groups connected to the events

DESIGN OF THE HAR SURVEY A list-assisted sample was drawn for a national sample of telephone households. The Wave 1 field period started on September 17 and ran until October 17, with the bulk of interviewing completed by October 8. The final N was 752. The Wave 2 interviewing began on March 11, and the field period ended April 16. The final N was 613 recontacts and 151 new RDD respondents.

REACTIONS TO THE ATTACKS

Wave 1: The Attacks Have Affected People’s Sense of Safety and Security

Wave 1 – Wave 2: Little Change in Perceived Loss of Personal Security

Wave 1 – Wave 2: Women Tend to Report being More Shaken at Wave 2 These differences do not appear by race or age

Wave 1: Attention to the News Is Related to a Lowered Sense of Safety

PSYCHOLOGICAL RESPONSES TO THE ATTACKS

Wave 1: Comparison of Depressive Symptoms over Time

Wave 1 – Wave 2: Levels of Depression in the Population Are Declining Slightly

ATTITUDES ABOUT CIVIL LIBERTIES

Wave 1 – Wave 2: Sustained Security Loss Related to Greater Support for Anti-Terror Policies

Wave 1: Favorability Assessments of American Ethnic Groups Are Higher than Recently

Wave 1: Favorability of Ethnic Groups in the United States and Overseas

Wave 2- Wave 1: Attention to War on Terrorism Related to Changes in Group Favorability

CONCLUSIONS The impact of the attacks on 9/11 has been relatively severe and durable Americans are coping personally, but the greater damage may be to civil society, civil liberties, and confidence in institutions Americans’ loss of a sense of personal safety and security persists and is complicated by the difficulty of: 1. Keeping the country on alert to minimize harm 2. Defining a clear “result” in the “war on terrorism” that the public understands and can accept 3. Producing a satisfactory result on a timely basis in what is described as a protracted war on terrorism