Adaptation to and Mental Health symptoms to
BP Oil spill among MS gulf coast residents #2
Principle Investigator:
Tom Osowski
Alan Bougere
Tim Rehner (contact Rehner if there are questions related to this proposal)
Project Cluster:
Observe: social and economic sampling human factors
Objectives:
1) Define levels of adaptation and resilience and frequency of mental health symptoms
among Mississippi residents south of I-10
2) Establish longitudinal surveillance data focusing on Mississippi coast line and
beginning a comparative baseline from residents of the Alabama coast.
3) Compare results from October 2010 with those from April 2011.
Approach:
Data will be collected through guided interviews. The same data collection instrument
that was used in October 2010 will be used in April 2011. A multi stage cluster sampling
approach will be used. Approximately 360 interviews will be completed by Southern Miss
students from the School of Social Work and other departments.
Approximate cost:
$119,000
Summary Phase I (June – December 2010)
The progress made on the current project has been substantial. We collected about 45%
of all the anticipated data (N=170) on Oct 29, 2010. We are planning to collect the remaining
200 interviews next week end (Nov 6). The interviews have been trained and all the surveys
prepared. Maps directing all the research teams to each randomly selected city block south of I10 have been printed. The SPSS files for data entry are awaiting all the data. The GAs will begin
Adaptation to and Mental Health symptoms to
BP Oil spill among MS gulf coast residents #2
data entry this week. We are on schedule and should have the data entered before the end of the
month. Analysis will begin as soon as the data set is cleaned.
Adaptation to and Mental Health symptoms to
BP Oil spill among MS gulf coast residents #2
Adaptation and children’s mental health symptoms among Mississippi Residents exposed to the
BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill
(Effective dates: Jan – Dec 2011)
November 1, 2010
Residents of the three Mississippi Gulf Coast counties (Hancock, Harrison, Jackson) have
adapted psychologically, emotionally, socially, physically, and economically to the largest
human-made disaster in American history – the British Petroleum’s (BP) Horizon oil spill of 200
million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The study completed by Columbia University
soon after the spill (April 2010) documented some of the human response to the disaster. Our
own study results (Osowski, Rehner, Bougere 2010) that randomly sampled residents within the
southern 3 Mississippi counties and lived south of I-10 in October of 2010 will soon inform us as
to the adaptation of selected residents to the BP oil spill disaster. We will also learn about the
extent to which Hurricane Katrina contributed or moderated the adaptation of residents to the
spill.
The psychosocial impact of this BP oil spill required residents of the Gulf South to once
again to enter into a long term response and recovery mode. The residents in this area have been
in “chronic state” of response and recovery to disaster for a decade. Furthermore, while residents
from this area have been remarkably resilient, the negative impact of chronic responses along
with the disproportionate impact of disaster on the more vulnerable populations (children,
elderly, the poor, persons with mental illness, minorities) is unknown.
To date, response efforts were successful in capping the leak and coastal counties
continue to “clean” beaches and wetlands where tar balls appear. Many residents of the
Adaptation to and Mental Health symptoms to
BP Oil spill among MS gulf coast residents #2
Mississippi coastal counties have applied for compensation and a significant number have also
received settlements from BP for lost wages, particularly for fishermen and those in the
hospitality industry. To some extent, the lives of residents –unless still unemployed because of
the spill or the sluggish economy – has gone back to “normal”.
As life on the coast has begun to stabilize, the long term impact on individuals and
families is still unknown. Questions remain about the relationship between adaptation to the spill
and personal recovery from Katrina. This oil spill disaster is different from the previous ones that
have struck the coast of Mississippi and require capacity for adaptation that have not been
required before anywhere in the USA. While the oil spill initially threatened residents’ hopes and
the very courage to live on the coast one wonders about the extent to which the Katrina
experience uniquely prepared residents to cope and adapt to this oil spill disaster.
This epidemiological descriptive study is a replication of the study that was completed in
the fall of 2010. It aims to define the extent to which residents of the Mississippi gulf coast have
adapted 12 months after the insidious BP oil spill disaster. Additionally, mental health symptoms
among children will also be explored as an indication of how well families have adapted to the
new realities of life on the gulf coast. A baseline for defining adaptation among residents of the
Alabama coast (Baldwin County) is also proposed as a new element of this study. Including data
from south Alabama (in collaboration with the University of South Alabama) will enable
comparison across the state line. Our partners in the USA system will allow them to coordinate
the actual data collection using the same data collection instruments and same sampling
strategies for south Baldwin County.
Adaptation to and Mental Health symptoms to
BP Oil spill among MS gulf coast residents #2
The primary dependent variables that will be used in this study is depression – an
establish indicator of adaptation. The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale
(CESD) developed by Radloff (1977) is well established psychometrically as a measure of
overall adaptation and is associated with immune system vulnerabilities and physical illnesses.
Some of the independent variables that will be considered in this replication study will be
perceived impact of this disaster, exposure, proximity to the coast line, dependence on the Gulf
for family income, extent of damage from Hurricane Katrina, availability of aid after Katrina and
BP settlements, personal and family stability, income and education. Subjects (heads of
household) will be randomly selected and invited to participate in the study.
A multistage cluster sampling approach will be used for selecting a sample. Data will be
collected through guided interviews conducted by graduate and undergraduate students from the
University of Southern Mississippi’s School of Social Work and any other students interested in
participating in this important study. Data will be collected in one large scale data collection
effort during the spring semester (2011). Some demographic data for the counties will also be
collected. These data will include utilization of mental health, alcohol and drug treatment usage,
DUI trends, delinquency rates, domestic violence rates, unemployment rates, BP claims paid, etc.
The results will be published and presented at professional meetings.