With all the public attention, it was not difficult for the perpetrators of September 11 to spread fear and anxiety. Polls found that far more people feared that terrorism would visit them or their families after 9/11 than had been the case after the Oklahoma City bombing. In addition, people reported remaining fearful for weeks and months after the events of September 11—much longer than after the Oklahoma City bombing.

Despite reassurances by public figures, it remained difficult for people to return to their normal lives in the days following the terrorist attacks.

	At 2:30 p.m. on the day of the attacks, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani held a press conference to address and reassure the public. ABCNews VideoSource

Many people told pollsters they were depressed. A connection existed between those people who said that they could not stop watching television, that they were addicted to news about the terrorism events, and the people who reported being depressed. This response continued past the short term, with far more women than men being affected in this way. Eventually, the number of people who said they were depressed did decline slightly.