SGER: The Parallel Strengths and Weaknesses of the Civil Society and the State: The Example of Katrina Survivors

这一研究项目调查了政府和非政府机构和组织的行动如何影响灾民在处理悲痛和损失以及适应新情况的同时，在心理、经济和社会方面恢复的能力。对卡特里娜飓风的反应表明，地方公共服务组织虽然极其宝贵，但无法满足灾民的各种需要，联邦和州政府必须提供基本的协调以及大规模的资源。通过审查政府和非政府组织在应对人类危机方面的失败和成功，这项研究为不同级别的政府和民间社会之间最有效的作用分工提供了实际的见解。卡特里娜飓风引发的广泛危机为更好地了解政府、非政府组织和由亲友组成的较小的非正式网络在确定灾害的长期后果以及更长期的困难方面所起的补充作用提供了机会。这些数据与灾难最接近的时期有关，是未来研究的宝贵基线。研究小组将确定并联系到德克萨斯州的不同疏散群体，并随着时间的推移与他们保持联系，以确定不同机构的行动如何影响家庭的长期适应。撤离人员小组将由来自不同种族和民族的个人组成，并将代表不同的社会经济阶层。以民族志为导向的访谈调查了家庭在风暴前的情况和活动，以及他们在风暴期间和之后的活动和行动。访谈特别侧重于与各种形式的帮助提供者的接触，包括政府机构、非政府组织以及更多非正式的社区和亲属网络。目标是开发一个定性数据库，使之能够概括撤离者寻求和接受帮助的不同方式，以及他们的战略与他们的种族、族裔和社会经济地位、他们的个人资源和最终结果之间的关系。该项目包括在一年期间对撤离者进行持续的后续行动。这项研究是在德克萨斯州的奥斯汀进行的，那里接收了大量的疏散人口，并赞助了一系列帮助组织。这项研究在理论和实践上有助于更好地理解政府和非政府组织如何提高复原力，以及如何调解损失对人类行为的影响，救灾工作中的社会不平等，以及个人能力与有效获得政府和民间支持和福利的关系。

This research project investigates the ways in which the actions of governmental and non-governmental agencies and organizations affect the ability of disaster victims to recover psychologically, economically, and socially, while dealing with grief and loss and adapting to new situations. The response to hurricane Katrina makes it clear that local human services organizations, while extremely valuable, are unable to address the full range of needs of disaster victims, and that federal and state governments must provide basic coordination, as well as large-scale resources. By examining both the failures and successes of both governmental and nongovernmental organizations in response to the human crisis the research provides practical insights into the most effective division of roles between different levels of government and civil society. The wide-ranging crisis precipitated by Hurricane Katrina provides the opportunity to better understand the complementary roles of government, non-governmental organization, and the smaller informal networks composed of relatives and friends in determining the long-term consequences of disasters, as well as more chronic difficulties. The data relate to the period most proximate to the disaster and represent an invaluable baseline on which future research will build. The research team will identify and contact a diverse group of evacuees to Texas and remain in contact with them over time in order to identify how the actions of various agencies influences a family's long-term adaptation. The panel of evacuees will consist of individuals from various racial and ethnic groups and will represent different socioeconomic strata. Ethnographically oriented interviews investigate families' situation and activities prior to the storm, and their activities and movements during the storm and afterwards. The interviews focus specifically on contact with all forms of help providers, including government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and more informal community and kin networks. The objective is the development of a qualitative database that will make it possible to develop generalizations concerning the different ways in which evacuees sought and received help, and how their strategies related to their race, ethnicity, and socio-economic status, their personal resources and the eventual outcomes. The project includes on-going follow-up with evacuees over the period of a year. The study is being carried out in Austin, Texas, which received a substantial population of evacuees and sponsors a range of helping organizations.This research contributes theoretically and practically to a better understanding of how both governmental and non-governmental organizations enhance resiliency and mediate the impact of loss on human behavior, social inequities in disaster relief efforts, and the relationship of individual capabilities to the effective access to both government and civil supports and benefits.