Race, Gender, and Resilience in Gulf Coast Communities

Background and Purpose: The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWH) was one of the largest hydrocarbon disasters in US history. The 4.9 million barrels of oil that poured into the Gulf of Mexico impacted the natural environment, as well as the lives of communities residing along the coastal region. While these communities share a common experience through their connection to the Gulf of Mexico, the populations are diverse in terms of race, gender, and ethnicity, suggesting experiences of disaster may bring varying perspectives. Race and gender have been shown to greatly impact post-disaster resilience, making recovery more difficult for certain populations. This paper explores the roles of race and gender in post-disaster recovery, presenting findings from a recently completed study from three Gulf Coast communities impacted by the DWH oil spill.

Methods: A 60-minute, in-person survey was administered to a total of 326 residents from the Gulf Coast communities of Port Sulphur, LA, Galliano, LA, and Bayou La Batre, AL to investigate the role of social networks, risk perceptions, preparedness measures, individual resilience (CD-RISC), and demographics as predictors of preparedness and resilience for future hydrocarbon events. Survey respondents were predominately White (n=160), Black (n=58), and Vietnamese (n=75), and our final sample size was 326 participants (n=326). Other variables in the study included age, gender, education, site, disaster experience, and trust of social networks. Descriptive and inferential analytic techniques were used to answer the research question. Logistic regression outcome and key predictors models were used to determine the probability of having higher levels of resilience.

Results: A hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that gender explained 5% of the variance in individual resilience (CD-RISC), F (2,322) = 120.24, p < .0001. Furthermore, race explained an incremental 11% of the variance in individual resilience, F (3, 320) = 138.24 p < .0001, above and beyond the variance in accounted for by gender. Further models were estimated using mediation to estimate the indirect effect of disaster exposure severity (the number of disaster events experienced) & race explained 7% of the variance in individual resilience (CD-RISC), F (6, 320) = 120.24, p < .0001. on CD-RISC. These models found that the number of exposures to disasters did not mediate the relationship between race, gender, and CD-RISC score.

Conclusions and Implications: This study identified predictors of resilience as measured by the CD-RISC 10 scale among people who live in communities impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The results indicate significant effects of race on resilience, but contrary to prevalent literature, no significant effects of gender on resilience among this particular sample population. Future social work research should be directed at identifying specific factors that affect resilience among various populations, and on strengthening resilience especially for vulnerable populations. Specifically, the findings suggest more nuanced and targeted interventions in the areas of disaster response and preparedness may be needed to address the unique experiences and contexts of particular communities. Implications for social work policy, practice, and research will be discussed.