Context Of Natural Disasters Research Articles

Research on emergency evacuation behavior rules of pedestrians under fire and explosion accidents in chemical parks considering social relationships

Chemical parks present a high risk of sudden accidents such as fires and explosions, given the significant number of hazardous sources present. This is why emergency evacuation after accidents is so essential. The behavior of crowds during evacuation is complex, and social relationships among pedestrians can have differentiated effects on the evacuation process. However, most of the current crowd evacuation research has focused on life scenarios and natural disaster contexts. Less attention has been paid to the emergency evacuation of crowds affected by social relations in the context of chemical accident disasters. A comprehensive evacuation model that considers the dynamic evolution of crowd transfer both within and outside the factory area is proposed in this paper. Using the Anylogic software based on the social force model, this study constructs emergency evacuation scenarios for crowd in the context of fire and explosion accidents, and toxic gas leakage incidents. Specifically, this study analyzes the impact of three factors, namely inter-personal distance, group size, and proportion of different group sizes in the total population, on the evacuation efficiency. It has been found that when large groups of pedestrians are split into smaller ones for evacuation, the evacuation efficiency can be effectively improved. The study includes calculations of the lethal range of a toxic gas and simulated the process of relocating large crowds of people to nearby shelters. In addition, a strategy for deploying pedestrian groups based on social relationships was developed for the context of mass evacuation. These measures have the potential to optimize the evacuation efficiency of pedestrian groups in chemical parks, including expanding and modifying shelters, diverting dense crowds from residential plots, using interpersonal spacing of 0.1 m, and splitting large groups of pedestrians into smaller ones. The research results can provide a reference for decision making for large-scale group evacuation in chemical parks, and improve the emergency evacuation capability and local risk response capability in chemical parks.

Tourists’ national identity at heritage sites of natural disasters

Cultivating national identity at dark heritage sites is of national significance and important for one's sense of belonging. Chinese national identity seems to be a quintessential case to investigate, given nation-building is central to the development of dark heritage tourism in China. However, there is a lack of systematic and in-depth understanding of the factors associated with the construction of national identity among visitors. Drawing on self-categorisation theory, this paper explores visitors' perception of national identity in a dark heritage context of natural disasters. Built on the analysis of 83 semi-structured interviews from two different dark heritage sites in China, a conceptual model illustrating the salience of national identity was developed. The model indicates that Chinese national identity could be facilitated by external stimuli and national identity attributes. The salient national identity is accompanied by emotional reactions and positive evaluation of the national group. The findings might provide managerial insights into nation-building practice and endeavours through dark heritage of natural disasters.

Using a Hybrid Approach to Increase the Impact of Medical Response to Natural Disasters.

The United Nations (UN) established an umbrella of organizations to manage distinct clusters of humanitarian aid. The World Health Organization (WHO) oversees the health cluster, giving it responsibility for global, national, and local medical responses to natural disasters. However, this centralized structure insufficiently engages local players, impeding robust local implementation. The Gorkha earthquake struck Nepal on April 25, 2015, becoming Nepal's most severe natural disaster since the 1934 Nepal-Bihar earthquake. In coordinated response, 2 organizations, Empower Nepali Girls and International Neurosurgical Children's Association, used a hybrid approach integrating continuous communication with local recipients. Each organization mobilized its principal resource strengths-material medical supplies or human capital-thereby efficiently deploying resources to maximize the impact of the medical response. In addition to efficient resource use, this approach facilitates dynamic medical responses from highly mobile organizations. Importantly, in addition to future earthquakes in Nepal, this medical response strategy is easily scalable to other natural disaster contexts and other medical relief organizations. Preemptively identifying partner organizations with complementary strengths, continuous engagement with recipient populations, and creating disaster- and region-specific response teams may represent viable variations of the WHO cluster model with greater efficacy in local implementation of treatment in acute disaster scenarios.

Unequal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health: Role of the neighborhood environment.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a significant toll on people's mental wellbeing. Few studies have investigated how the neighborhood environment might help to moderate the mental health impact in a natural disaster context. We aim to investigate the unequal impact of the pandemic on mental health between different population groups, and the role of the neighborhood environment in alleviating this impact. We collected survey data (n=2,741) on mental health, neighborhood environment, and pandemic-related behaviors in Beijing metropolitan region between July 10 and 28, 2020, and then applied the partial proportional odds model. Overall, we found that the pandemic has disproportionately affected the lower-income people. The lower-income residents experienced a greater psychological impact than the higher-income residents. We further found that distance to an urban park was a key built environment variable that moderates mental health impact. Residents who lived near urban parks were 4.2 to 4.6% less likely to report an increase in negative emotions, and therefore are more resilient to the mental health impact. In addition to the built environment, a cohesive neighborhood environment may have also helped to mitigate the negative mental health impacts. These findings can inform planning policies that aim to promote healthy and resilient communities.

Supporting self-recovery in post-conflict situations: a case study of Syria

Supporting shelter self-recovery is a modality of humanitarian aid which remains ill-defined and misunderstood despite the many aid organizations that utilize this approach. Of the little existing knowledge and best practices regarding self-recovery support methods, most has been developed for natural disaster contexts, and not post-conflict. Post-conflict situations are much more complex than disasters due to a multitude of economic, social, and other factors. Further research is greatly needed to support self-recovery programs in post-conflict situations, especially due to the complexities involved. This research aims to highlight the unique complexities of post-conflict support to self-recovery and to identify ways of improving this support. This is done through a combination of a literature review and a case study of self-recovery support methods currently being employed in Syria. The results include a framework which identifies and categorizes common factors, barriers, and facilitators which influence the implementation of self-recovery support projects. The results also include a list of recommendations to improve these projects for stakeholders involved. Based on an analysis of these recommendations, five Key Areas for Action are discussed which are as follows: maximizing implementing organizations’ capacities, contextualizing risks, increasing adaptable and flexible programming, addressing the social dimension, and improving international coordination.

Supply Chain Integration and Resilience Building in the Context of Natural Disasters

This study clarifies how Supply Chain Integration (SCI) supports Supply Chain Resilience (SCRES) building in natural disaster contexts and posits a model of exact SCI practices and other possible practices in multiple SCRES building stages. Structural Contingency Theory (SCT) enables the recognition of SCI orientation and scope, and the structure of the SCRES building process, segmented in active and inactive stages. The study examines 13 natural disasters as environmental contingencies affecting one or more of 22 supply chains (SC) by drawing on semi-structured interviews and secondary data applying replication techniques. The findings provide a unique model that captures how SCI is utilised to support the SCRES building process, captures trust as relevant SC practice, unpacks the role of SCI in face of natural disasters, and inductively captures relevant attributes of SCI and additional practices important in building resilience.

Provision of mental health services immediately following a natural disaster: Experiences after Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

The increased risk of mental health disorders in the months and years following a natural disaster highlights the need for more immediate preventive intervention. The objective of the current study was to learn from a real-time implementation of a natural disaster response following the Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico to identify strategies for providing mental health services immediately after a natural disaster. Two focus groups were held with faculty (n = 6) and graduate students (n = 4) from a graduate psychology program at the Universidad Carlos Albizu, Centro Universitario Mayagüez. An additional key informant interview was conducted with two faculty member participants. Data were analyzed qualitatively using thematic analysis. The delivery of mental health services was organized into three major themes: (1) finding a way to communicate, (2) targeting key access points for outreach and centralization of resources, and (3) providing triaged mental health care based on level of need. Findings are used to guide recommendations for mental health response preparation in future natural disaster contexts.

Beyond the Fence: Constructed and Found spaces for children's outdoor play in natural and human-induced disaster contexts – Lessons from north-east Japan, and Za'atari refugee camp in Jordan

Play is part of the nature of childhood and affirmed as important internationally in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. It is therefore an anomaly that play is not a pillar of humanitarian aid and this is of particular concern because children are displaced and become refugees disproportionately compared to adults, as a result of both natural and human-induced disasters. Play can help children deal with some of the traumas resulting from a disaster and thus contribute to their health and well-being Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG3) and help prepare them for education Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4). Using the theoretical framework of constructed and found spaces for children's outdoor play the paper explores these in two contexts: after the triple disaster in north-east Japan and Za'atari refugee camp in Jordan. The results indicate that in the temporary housing areas of these disaster contexts children play in found spaces which are proximal, associated with temporary housing, and distal, beyond the temporary housing. New constructed spaces were stand alone or associated with safety/educational facilities for children but there were differences in this provision between the two contexts, with more provision in the bounded refugee camp than in the geographically dispersed disaster area in Japan. This difference in provision is suggested as being the result of several factors but may also reflect the fact that provision for children's play is not a pillar of humanitarian aid, which it should be in order to protect the child's right to play in such traumatic situations.

International HRM in the context of uncertainty and crisis: a systematic review of literature (2000–2018)

This study provides an overview of research on international HRM practices in the context of uncertainty and crisis. With a pool of 72 research articles drawn from 32 journals and published between the years 2000 and 2018, this paper aims to systematically review three distinct research streams within the uncertainty and crisis literature and their effects on international HRM. These three distinct research streams are 1) economic crisis, 2) natural disasters and 3) political uncertainty. In the context of constant economic crisis, we propose further research to explore and integrate high-performance HRM practices and talent management into socially responsible HRM practices. In a natural disaster context, we propose looking into emergency management frameworks within HRM. Finally, in a politically uncertain context, we propose that the development of expatriate assignments and their needs be further investigated. A key contribution of our research is its focus on context and responsiveness in an ever-changing business setting. The importance of boundary conditions and their effect on the implementation of HRM have been overlooked and understudied. A focus on these aspects will provide a nuanced and more realistic understanding of how international HRM unfolds. Relatedly, we consolidate existing research regarding international HRM practices in an uncertainty and crisis context, for our review found it to be scattered and fragmented among disciplines. By doing so, we review existing gaps in the literature and provide a detailed map for future research.

Students’ logical mathematical intelligence in completing mathematical problems with natural disaster context

Disaster awareness in the community is necessary to be improved continuously, especially for regions in Indonesia that are prone to natural disasters. One way to do is to integrate disaster problems in mathematics learning. Teachers need to train students to solve mathematical problems in the context of disaster. Through this problem, it is expected that students’ logical mathematical intelligence will increase. This research is a preliminary study to determine the logical mathematical intelligence of students in solving mathematical problems in the context of disaster. The participants in this study were all 23 junior high school students in class VII at SMPN 1 Peukan Bada, Aceh Besar. These students were domiciled in the 2004 tsunami-affected areas registered and members of the Disaster Preparedness Schools (SSB). The data in this study were collected through tests and interviews which were analyzed descriptively. Based on the indicators of logical mathematical intelligence, it was concluded that students’ logical mathematical abilities in solving mathematical problems in the context of disaster were in the low category, even though students in these schools already had knowledge of disaster through disaster simulation activities. Thus the mathematical learning design is needed to improve students’ logical mathematical intelligence in solving mathematical problems in the context of disaster.

The effect of different crisis communication channels

This study examines the effect of consumer-to-consumer crisis communication on consumers' safety perception and willingness to travel by comparing consumer-to-consumer communication with business-to-consumer crisis communication in a natural disaster context. The results reveal that consumer-to-consumer crisis communication effectively increases consumers' safety perception and willingness to travel by the equal degree as business-to-consumer communication does for groups with a high perceived risk. The findings also indicate that consumer-to-consumer crisis communication strongly affects consumers' decision-making process in a situation with a low perceived risk. This study extends knowledge of the classic crisis communication theory to a new era and practically contributes to organizations by shedding light on the effect of consumer-to-consumer crisis communication.

Earthquakes, attributions, and psychopathology: a study in a rural community

ABSTRACT Background: Attributions of both cause and blame form part of the diagnostic criteria for PTSD in DSM-5. Most work on attributions and psychopathology has focused on survivors of interpersonal violence and the two types of attribution have not been investigated together in natural disaster contexts. Previous work has identified that attributions to God’s role may be associated with survivors’ mental health following disasters. We studied the relation between attributions to God and other actors/entities in a rural community with high levels of religiosity that had suffered extensive damage and loss of life due to a series of earthquakes. Methods: A sample of survivors (N = 127) was assessed for degree of earthquake exposure, resource loss, attributions of cause and blame for the earthquake damage, and psychopathology three months after a series of major earthquakes in Italy. Results: Nature and chance were associated with higher cause than blame attributions whereas the State, the municipality, building firms, and the mafia were associated with higher blame than cause attributions. Additionally, both cause and blame attributions towards God and chance were positively correlated with PTSD and psychological distress symptoms. These associations remained significant while controlling for degree of earthquake exposure, resource loss, gender, age, and education. Conclusion: The current study supports the role played by cognitions about the cause of traumatic events, as introduced into the PTSD diagnosis in DSM-5, and extends this to blame of other entities such as God and chance following disasters.

Individuals’ religiosity and emotional coping in response to disasters

AbstractProviding information to help individuals cope physically and psychologically with a disaster is critical in crisis communication. However, how individuals cope is relatively understudied. In particular, researchers have examined how people emotionally cope during different types of crises, but not in a natural disaster context and not religiosity. Yet, religiosity can be important during disasters, given that about 89% of adults in the United States believe in God (Pew Research Center, 2014). Through ten focus groups (N = 77) and a survey (N = 1,484), this study examines how residents of the Southeast United States cope in response to tornadoes. Findings indicate that participants experience anxiety and fear during a tornado, but fear and hope trigger physical action taking (e.g., sheltering in place or collecting supplies). Prayer during a tornado does not significantly predict action taking. Religiosity significantly predicts physical action taking.

Application of LADM for disaster prone areas and communities

Disaster prevention, response and recovery require information about land tenure. Though, in many high-risk contexts, such records are non-existent or not up to date. As a result, vulnerable groups are often passed over by the government during risk management activities. At present there exists no dedicated tool for supporting land tenure recordation of all people-to-land relationships for the purposes of disaster risk management. More specifically, the required supportive data models and standards that could enable integration of concepts from the respective domains of land administration and disaster risk management are also lacking. Standardized data models could support software and service designs. This paper introduces a model linking the domains of land administration and disaster risk management – with the goal of supporting resilience against natural disasters and providing an approach for collecting data once, and using it multiple times. A design approach was used to develop the model – with adaption of the international Land Administration Domain Model (LADM) standard acting as a basis. Key features of the model include the support of interoperability through standardisation, the inclusion of all people-to-land relationships including those specific to disaster contexts, and the potential of the model to contribute to each of the disaster phases. The model is suggested to be highly applicable in natural disaster contexts where no land tenure information exists or the national mapping authority already uses a land administration system compatible with LADM. Overall, the model is considered as a step toward an implementable strategy for applying responsible land administration in the context of disaster risk management.

Ontologies of Property: Land Titling after the Indian Ocean Tsunami Disaster

Abstract The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami killed over 150,000 people and displaced over 500,000 in Indonesia alone. In the worst hit province of Aceh, the disaster damaged or destroyed almost all land-related records. The response included a World Bank-designed systematic land titling project. The Aceh case highlights a number of ontological assumptions of titling projects in natural disaster contexts, including that states are able to replace heterodox local processes with law; and that titling is a depoliticised technical process for the evidencing of existing legal rights to land. The article highlights the way in which the ontological framing of land titling is misplaced in dynamic circumstances of disaster involving urgent needs for shelter, and associated reconfigurations of property and human settlements.

The response of the Brazilian cashew nut supply chain to natural disasters: A practice-based view

In the face of natural disasters, companies attempt to maintain the sustainability of their business by implementing an appropriate set of organisational practices. Based on the practice-based view of strategic management, this paper aims to identify intra- and inter-organisational supply chain practices that help focal companies in the cashew nut supply chain in Brazil respond to natural disasters. To this end, three in-depth, qualitative case studies informed by semi-structured interviews and secondary data were conducted in Brazil. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis supported by NVivo software and based on an analytic framework that links resources and practices to performance in a natural disaster context. The findings indicate that companies embark on different trajectories depending on the resources and practices they deploy in response to natural disasters. While one company demonstrated a negative performance due to competitive inertia and low productivity, two companies maintained and increased their performance results based on inter-organisational collaboration. Findings demonstrate that responding to natural disasters requires companies to reorganise their strategies towards sustainability and to develop new practices such as food safety, organic production and social responsibility.

Distinctive chronic health risks in the context of disaster exposure: Findings from a nationally representative population survey

Introduction Exposure to natural and man-made disasters has the potential to lead to a range of acute adverse impacts on human health and well-being and may also exacerbate pre-existing health conditions. Yet, little is known about the impact of such potentially traumatic events on the risk of chronic physical health conditions. This study therefore sought to examine the full spectrum of chronic physical health risks associated with natural and man-made disaster exposure. Methods Data from a nationally representative, cross-sectional Australian population survey (n = 8841) were analysed through multivariate logistic regression analysis. Key survey measures were based on the chronic conditions module of the World Health Organization World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview (WMH-CIDI). Key outcomes examined included a wide spectrum of lifetime chronic physical health conditions, including national health priority conditions (asthma; cancer; stroke; gout/rheumatism/arthritis; diabetes/high blood sugar levels; heart/circulatory conditions) and other health conditions of six or more months in duration (hay fever; sinusitis; emphysema; bronchitis; anaemia; epilepsy; oedema; hernias; kidney problems; migraine; psoriasis; stomach/gastrointestinal ulcer; thyroid/goiter; tuberculosis; back or neck conditions). Multivariate analyses controlled for sociodemographic variables (age, gender, country of birth, marital status, qualification, labour force status, household location, relative socioeconomic disadvantage), exposure to natural and man-made disasters, and exposure to any other type of potentially traumatic event. Results Natural disaster exposure was primarily associated with an increased lifetime risk of stroke (AOR: 2.06, 95% CI [1.54, 2.74] P Conclusion Notwithstanding limits to causal attribution in cross-sectional survey data, the analysis of nationally representative population data provides a consistent method to explore the national spectrum of chronic physical health risks in the context of disaster exposure. Distinctive patterns of chronic health risks associated with varying types of disaster exposure warrant further investigation. Despite the relatively greater chronic health risks associated with man-made disaster, the national burden of chronic health conditions in Australian natural disaster contexts is particularly high.

Criticality ranking for components of a transportation network at risk from tropical cyclones

Assessment of the criticality of the components of an infrastructure network has received considerable attention within the context of technological failures and terrorist attacks. However, less effort has been spent on this subject within the context of natural disasters, especially tropical cyclones. This study evaluated the criticality of the components of a transportation network at risk from tropical cyclones with consideration of three characteristics of natural hazards: local concentration of impact, duration of sustained effect, and hazard occurrence probability. The physical meaning of the proposed criticality index for a specific component reflects the expected increase in transportation network functionality after the retrofitting of that particular component in advance of a tropical cyclone. The ranking based on this criticality index could help support long-term decision making regarding investment for disaster mitigation in relation to transportation networks. A case study of Hainan Island (China) was conducted to illustrate the applicability of the criticality index, and the practical meaning of the index was illustrated through comparison with indices from other studies.

La coordinación en el enfoque de recuperación temprana en contextos de desastres naturales

El presente trabajo es el resultado de un resumen de la tesina de maestría. El tema y problema de estudio elegido surgen de la necesidad de comprender y al mismo tiempo dar solución a dos desafíos largamente presentes para la comunidad humanitaria: la coordinación en ayuda humanitaria y el pasaje de la emergencia al desarrollo. Se toma como foco de investigación la coordinación en el enfoque de recuperación temprana de la Organización de las Naciones Unidas en contextos de desastres naturales. No sólo se analizó el modelo y la estructura de coordinación, sino además se investigaron desafíos y problemas pendientes. Se trató de recoger el punto de vistas de las Organizaciones no Gubernamentales siendo actores claves en el éxito de este abordaje. A modo de conclusión se plantean una serie de recomendaciones, las cuales mejoran la eficacia de la coordinación de este nuevo enfoque.Publicación en línea: 11 diciembre 2017

Psychiatric epidemiology and disaster exposure in Australia.

To examine the lifetime prevalence and risk of psychiatric disorders associated with natural and man-made disaster exposure in Australia. We utilised data from a nationally representative population survey (N = 8841) which were analysed through univariate and multivariate logistic regression in order to examine the full spectrum of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) affective, anxiety and substance use disorders associated with exposure to natural and man-made disaster. Man-made disaster exposure was primarily associated with an increased lifetime risk (odds ratio (95% CI)) of alcohol abuse disorder 2.29 (1.56-3.37), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) 2.27 (1.36-3.79), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) 1.95 (1.08-3.51) and major depressive disorder 1.69 (1.01-2.85). Multiple natural disaster exposure was associated with an increased lifetime risk of panic disorder 2.26 (1.11-4.61). Among the broader disorder spectrum examined, alcohol abuse disorder accounted for the single greatest increase in lifetime disorder prevalence associated with man-made disaster exposure, and the greatest number of natural or man-made disaster exposed individuals who had developed a lifetime psychiatric disorder. Despite the relatively greater disorder risk associated with man-made disaster, natural disaster exposure was associated with more cases of psychiatric disorder, likely due to the frequency with which these events occur in Australia. Notwithstanding the inability to draw causal inferences from cross-sectional survey data, population-based analyses provide a comprehensive and consistent method to ascertain the population imprint of psychiatric disorder and disaster exposure. Mental health policy and services should be targeting a range of psychiatric disorders in disaster contexts in addition to the usual focus on PTSD and depression, including alcohol abuse, panic disorder and OCD. Despite the relatively greater disorder risk associated with man-made disaster exposure, the national burden of psychiatric disorder in natural disaster contexts is particularly high.