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Controlling disasters: recognising latent goals after Hurricane Katrina
1Department of Sociology, Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX 77341-2446, USA. lmm007@shsu.edu
Disasters
|June 1, 2011
Summary
Classic sociological theory explains Hurricane Katrina
Area of Science:
- Sociology and Disaster Studies
- Social Control Theory
- Criminal Justice Studies
Background:
- Hurricane Katrina's landfall on August 29, 2005, led to a delayed and ineffective response.
- Levee failures exacerbated the disaster's impact.
- Existing sociological theories offer frameworks for understanding disaster aftermaths.
Purpose of the Study:
- To interpret the post-Hurricane Katrina disaster recovery through the lens of classic sociological theory.
- To analyze the role of latent social control goals in the disaster response.
- To draw parallels between disaster response and shifts in criminal justice risk management.
Main Methods:
- Application of classic sociological theories to analyze the Hurricane Katrina response.
- Examination of how survivors were framed as suspect or criminal.
- Conceptual analysis of disaster impacts as individual problems versus systemic failures.
Main Results:
- The disaster response prioritized social control over survivor assistance.
- Framing survivors as criminal justified the focus on control rather than aid.
- The post-Katrina response mirrored a shift in criminal justice towards 'risk management'.
Conclusions:
- Understanding the latent goals of social control provides a more complete explanation for the inadequate disaster response.
- The failure to achieve manifest goals of response and recovery was linked to implicit social control objectives.
- Recommendations are proposed for more equitable and just future disaster responses.
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