C.A.P.E.R. - Crime and Policy Evaluation Research Group

CAPER, the Crime and Policy Evaluation Research group at LSU, was formed in the Spring of 2005. It is an informal network of more than 30 crime and social policy researchers who collectively represent a wide variety of academic disciplines.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita displaced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes, and many of them evacuated to nearby cities and communities. Baton Rouge received perhaps the largest share of evacuees relative to its population size - as many as a quarter million added to a population base of about 400,000, according to some estimates - and a substantial number of them are expected to remain long term or permanently. The CAPER group investigates the strains on Baton Rouge's social fabric posed by this influx. They build on previous annual community surveys, and develop a panel sample that began the spring before the hurricanes and will continue for three additional waves over the course of the year following the event. They focus on the impact that social capital - community involvement, connections, and trust - has on a range of outcomes, including trust or blame of authorities, public policy preferences, fear of crime, feelings of stress and/or optimism, attitudes toward the evacuees, and intergroup relations, especially race relations. Given the magnitude of the event, they expect to measure effects that are otherwise difficult to detect. The study addresses central concerns of sociology, political science, and criminology. The CAPER group will also provide local government and civic, religious, relief, and economic organizations with findings they can use in their decision-making. For more information, contact Matthew Lee, Department of Sociology.

Materials Science and Engineering