REACTIONS TO VIOLENCE - A CAMPUS COPES WITH SERIAL MURDER

Following the tradition of research on community response to disaster, this project examined the emotional, behavioral, and attritudinal con sequences of living in a community victimized by a serial killer. Stud ents residing in Gainesville, Florida during the August 1990 slaying o f five college students were compared to a control population with reg ard to their symptomatology, stress, levels, attitudes toward crime an d criminals, and coping responses. The strongest evidence of negative reactivity was found with regard to phobic anxiety (effect size = .23) . Women were generally more negatively affected than men, and both tim e and physical distance from the murder sites were associated with red uced symptomatology. By nine months post-''disaster,'' phobic anxiety reactions in particular were substantially diminished. The theoretical and applied implications of this work are discussed.