The Great Depression is often thought of primarily in terms of its social and financial effects. Yet the Depression also had a significant impact on the United States' national security because the country was required to shift military and defense spending to domestic programs, as well as modify America's foreign policy to take into account the nation's weakened financial state. A paper could examine how the Great Depression altered the nation's approach to national security and the results of this change.
Although a bad time for the U.S. financially, the Great Depression was a singular time in the country's artistic and cultural production, with a number of classic books, songs, films and works of art produced during the period. Many of these pieces were in fact financed by the government as part of its WPA program. A research paper could examine common themes in some of the major works or the government's role in sponsoring these works.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal was one of the largest domestic policy initiatives in U.S. history. It forcefully asserted the government's role as a protector of livelihoods for U.S. citizens, launching a number of programs meant to put Americans to work during one the longest extended periods of mass unemployment the country has seen. Yet in the following decades, many of FDR's initiatives were repealed or cut back. A research paper could examine how much of the New Deal has been dismantled and its legacy today.
One of the most hotly debated topics regarding the Great Depression continues to be the role of the Federal Reserve in causing, prolonging and ending the crisis. In hindsight, some argue that the Federal Reserve could have done more to prevent the crisis by raising interest rates and thereby putting brakes on the economy before it overheated. Others argue that the Federal Reserve had only limited power and did what little it could to control lending. A research paper could examine the Federal Reserve's actions over the course of a crisis and give both sides of the argument.