This is one of the earliest studies to look at the impacts of a disaster with a gender lens. The sociocultural and psychological impacts of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill were examined in a population-based study of 594 men and women living in I3 Alaskan communities approximately one year after the spill occurred. A progressive "dose-response'' relationship was found between exposure to the oil spill and the subsequent cleanup efforts and the following variables: reported declines in traditional social relations with family members, friends, neighbours and co-workers; a decline in subsistence production and distribution activities; perceived increases in the amount of and problems associated with drinking, drug abuse, and domestic violence; a decline in perceived health status and an increase in the number of medical conditions verified by a physician: and increased post-spill rates of generalized anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression.