Robustness of Stakeholder Response Networks for Infrastructure System Protection

Abstract

During disasters, maintaining the functionality of infrastructure systems requires effective and efficient stakeholder collaboration. Aiming at understanding stakeholder collaboration robustness in response to infrastructure interruptions, this research proposes a network-based approach that comprises two steps: (1) generating response networks through network analysis; and (2) indicating time evolution of stakeholder collaboration robustness through a measure of topological network robustness. A case study, which examines stakeholder collaboration on protecting transportation infrastructure in Texas during Hurricane Harvey, was conducted to demonstrate the feasibility and validity of the proposed approach. From the case study, several social processes were identified to facilitate decision making in future disaster response. In addition, the case study implies that the documentation and sharing of disaster response information at the local level require further improvements. Overall, this research promotes interorganizational collaboration in emergency management through creating a systematic, network-based approach for quantitatively analyzing time evolution of stakeholder collaboration robustness. The findings provide implementable support for stakeholders to advance their collaboration knowledge, thereby enhancing the overall response performance.