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Laura Dodson
Professor Malcolm Campbell
English 1103
September 26, 2016
Topic Proposal: 9/11 Impact on the Mind
Introduction/Overview
The tragedy of the September 11th attacks is a prominent event in American history, as it
is annually remembered. After September 11th 2001, Americans experienced more psychological
illnesses than they had before, due to the personal impact of the attacks. The terror attacks
amplified the feelings of certain mental disorders, such as PTSD.
The main focus of my project is to evaluate the psychological impact of the 9/11 terror
attacks on Americans. The American citizens have had 15 years to cope with the trauma and this
time holds valuable information on how individuals have changed mentally.
The geological location of the person has been assumed to be a factor of the severity of
mental health, but the symptoms spread throughout America. Based on a 2002 survey in JAMA
The Journal of the American Medical Association, 4.3 percent of the general population had
signs of PTSD in the month or two after the attacks. Major symptoms were associated with the
more graphic the television coverage viewed.
News articles contain valuable information on the events themselves, to further my
knowledge of the actual events and what exactly lead to the psychological effects. I am focusing
on the effects of the mind, so the opinions of psychiatrists and scholarly figures are important to
understanding the full impact of the disorder. I have found articles and journals describing the
symptoms people have displayed after the attacks and how these relate to the trauma.

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Professionals used in the articles lead to further studies on the mental disorder, using personal
experiences. My topic is based off the mental status of Americans, so personal accounts allow
for primary information that can be used to justify my claim.
Some skeptics believe that there was no measurable mental effect from the 9/11 attacks
on the general population, but was claimed by those who falsely tested the study. James C.
Coyne expresses this contradiction in his article After 9/11: The Mental Health Crisis That Never
Came, arguing that only those who were directly affected or in the immediate vicinity of the
events had public health or clinically significant effects. People also argue the description of
PTSD and what symptoms determine the disorder. This lead to many denying the existence of
PTSD within the population.
Initial Inquiry Question(s)
How have the attacks of September 11th 2001 effected the mental health of America?
My Interest in this Topic
The terrorist attacks that occurred on 9/11 had such a profound impact on American
people that it is difficult to ignore. Although I was too young at the time to personally remember
the events, I have a deep respect and interest in the people who witnessed it in present time. The
emotions that these people must have been experiencing is something that cant be felt though
stories. Of course no one wants to have experienced that, but older relatives can tell you exactly
how they felt during the tragic fall of the Twin Towers and you want to relate to them to help
them cope. The selfless acts that took place between strangers and the firefighters who ran into
the buildings are inspirational. Evaluating how people are coping with the traumatic event is
interesting, this may be due to feelings of sympathy. I have watched videos of survivors who
described their experience during and then after the fall of the Twin Towers and they all had

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some form of PTSD. Especially those who were rescued from the Twin Towers after they fell,
experienced severe signs of PTSD, which was demonstrated by the story of the Miracle of
Stairwell B. Further investigation will reveal specific symptoms of PTSD and how they are
revealed within people who experienced 9/11. Discovering the correlation between proximity
and PTSD. How long did, or do, the effects of the attacks last on the minds of people?

Next Steps
The next steps are to read personal accounts of the aftermath of the attacks and how they
are individually coping with their experience. These reveal if the person is actually suffering, or
suffered, from PTSD and how long these effects have lasted since 2001. New York Times is a
great next step, considering the impact on the New York Community. I tried searching the
library database for works, but I didnt find much valuable information. I should use more
specific terms to uncover articles that could be useful for my topic.
I may look into narrowing my inquiry question to only include PTSD instead of a general
mental health of Americans. I think if I narrow my topic down to only those who were personally
effected by the 9/11 attacks that it will be too specific.

Laura,
I enjoyed reading your topic proposal, and I find the effects of 9/11 on the mental health
of Americans to be an extremely interesting topic. I liked how you gave an example of a critics
opinion and a supporters view on the issue; also I love the attention your first paragraph pulled
in. I was wondering though, are there other things you know about 9/11 that you can incorporate
into the My Interest section? Also, are there other things you hope to learn outside of the
correlation of PTSD and how long the effects last? I agree that if you narrow it down to just

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PTSD in those affected by 9/11 your topic may get too specific and not reach the page
requirement. Maybe instead of only including PTSD of Americans, make you could do it on the
psychological effects of those who survived or were in proximity of terrorist attacks? That way
you could make it a paper that handles the global issue? Also, I noticed that you use affect and
effect and I loved how you used those in the correct wa y. I always tend to mix the two up.
Affect is verb, effect is noun. Oh, dont forget in the first part to include why your topic is
complex. Overall, outside of the things mentioned above and a few grammar mistakes, your
topic seems solid, strong, and complex.
-Abigail Freeman