U.S. cities are predicted to remain likely targets of terrorism, yet little is known about how urban residents prepare for and respond to terrorist events. As a result, there is inadequate theory concerning people's resilience to terrorist attacks in contemporary U.S. society. This doctoral dissertation research examines how individuals' social contacts and mobility shape the way they perceive their vulnerability and the vulnerability of their households to terrorism, and how people act upon these perceptions. Since gender affects both social interactions and mobility, the affect of gender on vulnerability awareness will also be explored. The project asks the following questions: (1) How do an individual's personal contacts and daily mobility affect the type of information acquired about the probability of experiencing terrorism; the exposure to a range of choices for responding to the threat of terrorism or actual terrorist events; the actual response to terrorism; and the perception of risk and awareness of vulnerability? 2) How does the gendered nature of personal contacts and mobility affect a person's awareness of vulnerability to terrorism? In-depth interviews with low- and middle-income households in the Worceser, MA and New York, NY metro areas will provide data on how people become aware of their vulnerability to terrorism through their personal contacts and daily mobility. The findings will show how personal contacts and affiliations, as well as mobility and locations visited, affect information flows to individuals regarding terrorism and potential mitigation activities, as well as awareness of household vulnerabilty. A grounded theory, qualitative approach is used to generate analyse the data, while several statistical techniques are used to establish generalizability.
Research on New York City after 9/11 shows that social destruction spread beyond the site of physical destruction, highlighting the need to reconceptualize the existence and creation of urban vulnerabilities and how municipalities might best prepare their populations for terrorism. This research will generate theory relevant for policy makers, especially emergency managers, who seek to reduce urban vulnerability and build resiliency in a time of terrorism. As a Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement award, this award also will provide support to enable a promising student to establish an independent research career.
