Submission Date
4-28-2025
Document Type
Paper
Department
Politics
Adviser
Ann Karreth
Committee Member
Johannes Karreth
Committee Member
Kelly Sorensen
Department Chair
Ann Karreth
Project Description
What accounts for citizens’ policy preferences between short-term payoff and long-term investment policies? How are these beliefs impacted by the personal construction of time horizons in relation to “end of times” experiences or disasters? In this research study, I will investigate whether the year 2020 shifted certain demographic groups either towards or away from supporting long-term investment policies in the three aforementioned areas. I compare the preferences of sample groups of Americans before, during, and after 2020, to determine whether the endurance of this time period shifted individuals towards a “Never again” or a “Not Now” mentality, and what the implications are of this shift, if any, for American politics. I will also seek to identify which groups, if any, are most vulnerable to shifts post-crises, and what the implications are of these findings for political mobilization and outreach to target demographics in the future.
Recommended Citation
Barlow, Lauren K., "Next Time, There Will Be No Next Time: The Short vs. Long Term Policy Debate for Catastrophe, Analyzed Through Major Events in the United States of America During 2020" (2025). Politics Honors Papers. 19.
https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/pol_hon/19
