Response Contingency Research Articles

EXPRESS: The Role of Real-Time Event Monitoring in Dynamic Response to Disruptions

This paper investigates a risk-averse firm’s investment strategy in real-time event-monitoring technologies coupled with dynamic disruption response decisions. The firm does not know how long the disruption will last, and the event-monitoring solutions provide the firm with a quicker update regarding the length of the disruption. When the firm receives an update, it has the flexibility to revise its initial response action. We model a two-stage stochastic program to study this problem where the risk aversion is modeled in the form of a Service-at-Risk (SaR) constraint. Our paper makes four important contributions. First, it characterizes the optimal recourse strategies given an update and identifies the conditions when the firm benefits from the recourse. Second, we characterize the optimal investment and initial response strategies where we find that the investment behavior is non-monotone. Third, our paper shows an interesting impact of risk aversion on the investment decision such that the firm may benefit from investing in event monitoring under moderate degrees of risk aversion, but not necessarily under low or high degrees of risk aversion. Fourth, we find that a firm’s benefit from event monitoring is more profound when the capacity of contingency response is moderately limited.

Measuring Children's Reward and Punishment Sensitivity: An Initial Psychometric Evaluation of the Contingency Response Rating Scale.

Existing research shows that children's responses to rewards and punishments are essential for understanding attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder, and callous-unemotional traits. The present study developed the Contingency Response Rating Scale (CRRS) to fulfill the need for a reliable and valid measure of children's contingency response style that is brief, easy to use in applied settings, and provides additional information to existing clinical measures. We examined the psychometric properties of the CRRS in a sample of 196 children (ages 5-12), most of whom were referred to evaluate attention and behavior problems in an outpatient clinic. Using principal axis factoring, we identified five factors: (a) punishment ineffectiveness, (b) reward ineffectiveness, (c) punishment dysregulation, (d) reward dysregulation, and (e) contingency insensitivity. The subscales based on these factors showed acceptable test-retest and internal consistency reliability, and scale intercorrelations varied from low to moderate. The subscales also captured significant variance not explained by child or parent demographics and were associated with measures of psychopathology and impairment. The results provide preliminary evidence that the CRRS may be a helpful tool for assessing reward and punishment sensitivity in children with attention and behavior problems.

Dopaminergic lesions of the anterior cingulate cortex of rats increase vulnerability to salient distractors.

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been shown to be critical to many aspects of executive function including filtering irrelevant information, updating response contingencies when reinforcement contingencies change and stabilizing task sets. Nonspecific lesions to this region in rats produce a vulnerability to distractors that have gained salience through prior associations with reinforcement. These lesions also exacerbate cognitive fatigue in tests of sustained attention but do not produce global attentional impairments nor do they produce distractibility to novel distractors that do not have a prior association with reinforcement. To determine the neurochemical basis of these cognitive impairments, dopaminergically selective lesions of the ACC were made in both male and female Long-Evans, hooded rats prior to assessment in two attentional tasks. Dopaminergic lesions of the ACC increase the vulnerability of subjects to previously reinforced distractors and impede formation of an attentional set. Lesioned rats were not more susceptible to the effects of novel, irrelevant stimuli in a test of sustained attention as has been previously shown. Additionally, the effects of dopaminergic lesions were found to differ based on sex. Lesioned female, but not male, rats were more vulnerable than sham-lesioned females to the effects of prolonged testing and the removal of reinforcement during a test of sustained attention. Together, these data support the hypothesis that dopamine in the ACC is critical to filtering distractors whose salience has been gained through reinforcement.

Active and passive waiting in impulsive choice: Effects of fixed-interval and fixed-time delays.

Behavioral interventions to improve self-control, preference for a larger-later (LL) reward over a smaller-sooner (SS) reward, involve experience with delayed rewards. Whether they involve timing processes remains controversial. In rats, there have been inconsistent results on whether timing processes may be involved in intervention-induced improvements in self-control. Interventions that improved self-control with corresponding timing improvements used fixed-interval (FI) delays, whereas interventions that failed to find corresponding timing improvements used fixed-time (FT) delays. The FI schedule includes a response contingency (active waiting), whereas the FT schedule delivers reward automatically (passive waiting). The present study compared the effects of FI and FT schedules in interventions and impulsive choice tasks to evaluate effects on self-control and timing behavior. The impulsive choice task evaluated preference for an SS option (one pellet after 10-, 15-, 20-, 25-, and 30-s delays) versus an LL option (two pellets after a 30-s delay). The intervention task included forced-choice SS (one pellet after 10 s) and LL (two pellets after 30 s) sessions under FI or FT schedules. FI schedules produced greater sensitivity to SS delay in the impulsive choice task. Both FI and FT interventions increased LL choices. Following choice testing, temporal bisection and peak interval tasks revealed better timing precision for rats with an FI delay experience. Overall, the FI choice contingency was associated with improved temporal attention and timing precision.

Elements and Dimensions of Emergencies Preparedness and Response among Large Worship Centres in South-South Region of Nigeria

Good emergency response plans help ensure that appropriate actions are taken to minimize the effects of any loss. Considering the recent emergency events involving worship places in Nigeria, the study examined the emergency response preparedness measures in large worship centres in the South-South State capitals of Nigeria. With focus on worship centres with seating capacity above 1500, the study selected worship centres such as Full Life Christian Centre (Uyo), Living Faith Church (Port Harcourt), Salvation Ministry (Yenagoa) and Christ Embassy Summit (Benin) for the study. The study adopted cross-sectional survey research design based on questionnaire for data collection and analysis was done through Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS v.21) using the descriptive (frequency count and table) and inferential statistics (analysis of variance-ANOVA). The result of the analysis indicated that worship centres agreed to have appointed personnel for risk monitoring and emergency team (92.9%) and established a proper and functioning communication protocol with the relevant government sector (86.1%). However, the worship centres have not developed initial response monitoring framework to facilitate timely preparation and monitoring in case of crisis (67.2%) and lack a written contingency plan, response and emergency preparedness document that is publicly available (58.0%). The statistical analysis of the study indicated that worship centres showed significant difference in protocols between the Church and the Government for requesting/accepting international assistance (where p < 0.05, p = 0.014). overall, the worship centres showed significant level of emergency preparedness and response; however, there is need for integrated approach towards infrastructural development planning towards optimizing their emergency capabilities.

Multi-decadal changes in river morphology in an urbanizing watershed: Highland Creek, Toronto, Canada

Urban land development causes significant changes to river channel form and function. Outcomes are strongly conditioned by local circumstances although responses such as channel enlargement and incision are common but are highly variable in extent and detectability. Many case studies focus on small watersheds (or short reaches) and before-after conditions, and direct causation and temporal trajectories of change are not well known but often presumed to be a single step change and response. Well-documented examples in fully-urban, larger watersheds are rare, and rarer still are cases covering the full trajectory from pre-urban to fully urban land cover with accompanying data on the direct drivers of change such as discharge and stream power. Highland Creek, Toronto, has a drainage area of 102 km2 and between the early 1950s and 2000s underwent a land cover change from agricultural to completely urban in very low relief terrain with channels in narrow valleys incised locally into glacial sediments. Streamflow monitoring, land cover data and aerial photography over this seven-decade period, along with a calibrated runoff model and digital elevation data, give a complete picture over multiple epochs of the causes and changes in fluvial hydrology and geomorphology. The complete transformation of the flow regime, along with channel straightening and steepening, resulted in increases in average stream power (total and specific) of the order of ten and six times, respectively. The channel is now exceptionally energetic with maximum total and specific stream power for 2-year flood approaching 5000 Wm−1 and 300 Wm−2, respectively. The semi-alluvial and supply-limited character of the channels is also influential. Channel response is variable along the 20–25 km of channel measured and is notably different between the sub-watersheds, related to timing of development and its intersection with engineering intervention, and changing conceptions of the channel over time. In places the channel widened by a factor of four or five and changed from high sinuosity meanders to wide, bar-chute morphology, consistent with regime expectations for gravel-bed channels. In other places the process of urbanization has involved progressive engineering of the channel to convey stormwater (channelized), protect infrastructure and mitigate erosion, so that responses in these reaches are much more restricted and fluvial functions such as bend and bar development have been eliminated. Substantial channel transformation can be seen to have occurred episodically resulting from two major flood events as well as the increases in magnitude and frequency of peak flows, which limit post-flood recovery. Urbanization effects and consequences have developed gradually over a long period, rather than in a single urbanization step change, and they do not match simple models of channel evolution. In many ways urbanization of the river is ongoing, particularly in the form of geomorphically-referenced design of the channels as a response to damage from large floods and overall institutional watershed planning. The ongoing urbanization story of Highland Creek illustrates some extreme effects of urbanization as well as the complexity and contingency of response to the physical and institutional processes influencing the trajectory of urban river evolution.

재난현장 소방지휘관 지휘 능력 향상을 위한 교육·훈련 지휘능력지표 개선에 관한 연구

The critical issue of the lack of command ability of fire commanders who exercise independent command authority throughout the entire disaster process continues to be raised by firefighting organizations, the media, and disaster researchers. Therefore, this study aims to secure the fire commander’s ability to command a disaster site to prevent damage to firefighters working in the field, the purpose of this study is to suggest improvement plans limited to the command capability indicators in terms of education and training that can demonstrate successful command in the entire process of disaster response operations to prevent the spread of damage through early disaster responnes. The research method sets seven major research and analysis indicators such as information analysis/situation judgment ability, on-site situation judgment ability, command/control ability, contingency response ability, resource management ability, leadership, and knowledge of related knowledge, which are the core command competencies of commanders. We quantitatively analyzed whether the set indicators were reflected in the jop training process in firefighting, maritime police, and police training institutions, which are public officials organizations for specific positions. As a result of the analysis, the fire department, the on-site commander of the fire department, is required to have a higher level of command ability than the fire brigade, but the same command ability index was set as that of the fire brigade. In particular, it was found that in the fire department, which is performing the important duties of the regional emergency control group compared to the fire brigade and the fire department, acquisition of expertise, response to contingency situations, and information analysis judgment werw not even set in the command capability index, It was analyzed that firefighting had the lowest rate of reflection of the 7 key indicators of direct competency in the curriculum compared to the Coast Guard and the police. In conclusion, compared to the maritime police and the police, the seven core indicators of the on-scene commander’s command ability in the fire service are significantly insufficient in the reflection rate of the command competency indicators that suggest the direction of order to strengthen the command competency of firefighting field commanders, the command competency development competency and command capability index must be developed and reconfigured as soon as possible, and then the competency elements must be designed in detail to correct and supplement the insufficient competency within a short period of time. This is because education and training without a clear goal and direction are nothing more than a building in that cannot carry out the mission assigned to the organizations. Firefighting develops a process in which non-executives can participate in the process of non-executive participation, such as the police job training process, and prepares for unexpected developments of disasters. It is suggested that the entire shift be centered on virtual reality actual experience, such as acquiring, analyzing, and judging scientific disaster information that can be done. when the proposal is implemented, it is necessary to operate the process of conducting a preliminary evaluation of the fire commander’s 7 command ability indicators, develop a command ability index reflecting the evaluation results, and conduct a command ability test after completion of the course, and continue to revise and supplement according to the achievement of command ability.

An outbreak of acute neurological illness associated with drinking water source following a cyclone in Eluru, West Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh, India, December 2020

BackgroundIn December 2020, over 500 residents of Eluru City were hospitalised with seizures and sudden loss of consciousness (LOC) resembling the neurotoxic effects of organochlorine poisoning after a flooding event during the last week of November 2020. We described the epidemiological investigation of outbreak and identified risk factors. MethodsWe performed descriptive analysis followed by 1:1 unmatched case-control study. Cases were identified through house-to-house search and review of medical records at district hospital. A case defined as sudden onset LOC or new-onset seizures in an Eluru resident aged ≥1 year, December 1–15, 2020 and a control as absence of neurological symptoms in a person aged ≥1 year selected randomly from same administrative division of the case. We compared cases and controls for possible risk factors and calculated adjusted odds ratio (aOR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Biological and environmental samples were tested for contaminants. ResultsWe identified 545 cases (56% males), including one death. Seizures were reported in 491 (90%) cases. Median age was 27 years (interquartile range: 17–37 years) and 480 (88%) cases resided in urban area. Cases were clustered in administrative divisions supplied by municipal water reservoirs. Cases were more likely than controls to use municipal water as primary source of drinking water (aOR = 4.6, 95% CI = 1.6–13.0). High levels (average: 14.6 mg/l) of organochlorine compounds were detected in all municipal water samples (acceptable limit: <0.001 mg/l). ConclusionThis investigation highlights water ingestion as an exposure pathway for environmental contaminants (organochlorines) in the community after largescale flooding. We recommended strengthening safe water surveillance in natural disaster response contingency plans in Eluru.

Analysis of power flow transfer characteristics and stability improvement method of DC grid considering converter’s safety boundary

In order to analyze the impact of power flow transfer of the DC grid on safe operation, this paper studies the calculation methods of power flow transfer of the DC grid under master–slave control and droop control, including the calculation of power flow transfer in line disconnection situation and converter power changing situation. Through the proposed calculation methods, by considering the safety boundary constraints of the converter station based on the PQ power domain, the impact on the safe operation of a complex DC grid when power flow transferring is analyzed. Finally, to solve instability caused by the power flow transfer, a virtual impedance-based method is introduced to increase the safety boundary and enhances the stable operation ability of the system. Finally, the simulations of an 11-terminal CIGRE DC system established in PSCAD/EMTDC software verify the correctness of the proposed method. 11This work is supported by Cloud energy storage framework-based AI dispatching strategy of renewable energy integration and contingency response (5100-202199274A-0-0-00).

Longer duration intertrial intervals without visual stimuli have reinforcement value and increase the rate of reinforcement and punishment learning in computer-based discriminations in humans

In two experiments, we examined the motivational value of the duration of intertrial intervals and/or task delays on responding in a computer-based task in humans. In both experiments, four color stimuli with different response contingencies were displayed. Participants freely decided if they want to make a response or not towards each stimulus. The outcome that followed was either a putatively pleasant visual feedback (a “smiley face” display) or a blank screen, which was contingent on whether a response was made or withheld differently for different color stimuli. Our key manipulation was whether this blank screen outcome was longer or shorter than the visual feedback, that is whether the blank screen outcome made the next trial start sooner, later, or with the same delay as earning the visual feedback. We found 1) increased reinforced responding for encouraging visual feedback and 2) faster reinforcement and punishment learning to respond or withhold responding for this visual feedback if there was a longer duration blank screen outcome on trials in which people did not earn the visual feedback. This effect appeared to be driven more by the absolute length of the blank screen stimulus rather than whether it increased the delay until the start of the next trial more than the visual feedback. Additional research is needed to investigate boundary conditions that may determine when these blank screens do/do not have this motivational effect. Our findings suggest that manipulating task delay may be a way to increase motivation in laboratory studies in humans and possibly minimize individual differences in motivation due to differing sensitivity to demand characteristics in individual participants. However, additional research is needed to eliminate alternative explanations for this effect, such as an effect in which longer blank screen presentations led to better learning by preventing poorer learning that can be observed after massed trial presentations.

Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter Flight Dynamics Simulation and Rehearsal Results for Its Operational Readiness Checkout

Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO), also known as Danuri, was successfully launched on 4 Aug. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station using a Space-X Falcon-9 rocket. Flight dynamics (FD) operational readiness was one of the critical parts to be checked before the flight. To demonstrate FD software’s readiness and enhance the operator’s contingency response capabilities, KPLO FD specialists planned, organized, and conducted four simulations and two rehearsals before the KPLO launch. For the efficiency and integrity of FD simulation and rehearsal, different sets of blind test data were prepared, including the simulated tracking measurements that incorporated dynamical model errors, maneuver execution errors, and other errors associated with a tracking system. This paper presents the simulation and rehearsal results with lessons learned for the KPLO FD operational readiness checkout. As a result, every functionality of FD operation systems is firmly secured based on the operation procedure with an enhancement of contingency operational response capability. After conducting several simulations and rehearsals, KPLO FD specialists were much more confident in the flight teams’ ability to overcome the challenges in a realistic flight and FD software’s reliability in flying the KPLO. Moreover, the results of this work will provide numerous insights to the FD experts willing to prepare deep space flight operations.

Does exposure to pictures of nature boost attentional control in the Stroop task?

Attention Restoration Theory (ART) argues that natural environments, or stimuli associated with natural environments, can restore reduced inhibitory capacity. ART has received support from studies showing that the Stroop congruency effect (incongruent – congruent trial RTs) is reduced following exposure to nature. Given that the Stroop congruency effect conflates interference (inhibition), facilitation and response contingency effects, these previous studies have not tested the central tenet of ART. Therefore, the present study was designed to a) unambiguously assess the extent to which exposure to pictures of nature (vs. control pictures) reduces Stroop interference (incongruent – color-neutral trial RTs; i.e., prima facie evidence for restored inhibition/attentional control); b) shed additional light on cognitive processes involved in this reduction. In line with past studies, pictures of nature were perceived as more restorative compared to control pictures. However, despite being appropriately powered and showing typical Stroop findings, the present study failed to provide evidence that exposure to these restorative pictures (as opposed to control pictures) actually reduces Stroop interference: Bayesian evidence against this reduction was provided in both errors and in reaction times and this conclusion was also reinforced by sequential analyses. Consequently, the present results indicate that exposing individuals to pictures of nature is not effective for replenishing inhibitory control in the Stroop task.

Using individual‐based models to develop invasive species risk assessments by predicting species habitat suitability

Abstract Preventing invasive species establishment is a global conservation priority, yet limited management resources oftentimes restrict sites to target for prevention or monitoring. Risk assessments based on habitat suitability can identify sites most vulnerable to invasion that should be prioritized for preventative actions. Since habitat suitability is the result of interactions between environmental and organismal attributes, analyses should incorporate individual variability in demographics expected in an invasive population. Individual‐based models (IBMs) can predict habitat suitability by accounting for interactions between environmental conditions and individual‐level variability. We developed an IBM to predict suitability of rivers in the northern United States to the invasive fishes silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) and bighead carp (H. nobilis) and explored the projected effects of climate change on habitat suitability. All rivers supported adult survival, although complete survival of all adult demographics and positive growth only occurred in approximately 45% (17 of 38) of rivers for silver carp and 26% (10 of 38) of rivers for bighead carp. Only the largest individuals at the time of introduction survived in rivers where adult mortality occurred. Most rivers were unsuitable for young‐of‐year (89% and 92% of rivers for silver carp and bighead carp respectively). Climate change simulations had relatively little effect on adult habitat suitability but resulted in up to four times the number of rivers being suitable for young‐of‐year by the late‐21st century and greatly extended the viable spawning season by up to an additional 65 days for silver carp and 77 days for bighead carp. Synthesis and applications. Our approach of using individual‐based models as a risk assessment tool informs proactive conservation planning by identifying sites for invasive species early detection monitoring, promoting the development of contingency response plans and allowing for proactive prevention efforts. Model predictions also provide specific management guidance regarding the size and life stages to target for monitoring efforts, which capture gears to use, and the most effective time to sample for early detection monitoring.

경비업법상 일반경비원 직무요인 분석에 관한 연구

This study is an exploratory study for establishing job domain and specific job factor, which is the job scope of general security guards under the Security Business Act and it suggests basic guideline for clear guiding of general guards. In addition, the purpose of the Security Business Act is to clarify the limit of the work of general security guards and to provide the rationale of the authority basis to ensure smooth execution of security work. Delphi technique, which focuses on the experts on security affairs, aims to establish the job scope of general security guards and to establish objective and reasonable job scope rather than subjective interpretation by setting specific job contents classified by universally validated areas . As a result of this study, the general security guards' job scope in the Security Business Act is focusing on occupational security services, convoy security services, personal protection services, and machine security services. First of all, the most important job in the area of facility security service is 'security zone residence and patrol', which is the basic basis for detecting and responding to illegal intrusions and countermeasures against risk factors, focusing on the facilities to be expended. Based on this, access control, risk detection, and disaster management should be performed. In relation to visitors, parking management and civil service should be integrated. In the case of the convoy security service, vulnerabilities at the starting point and the destination are the largest, and immediate countermeasures should be taken when capturing the boundary and danger signs. In addition, it is necessary to establish organic step-by-step security guideline before and after the convoy security, confirm it and maintain the communication system with the base station. In the field of personal protection work, 'hazard access control' and 'contingency response' were the most important job factors. In order to secure the safety of the security guard, it is necessary to recognize the access control of the threat to the security guard as a central job through pre-planned work because both the prevention action and the immediate post reaction are important. The mechanical security work was guided by general security guards and urgent dispatch. This has an organic relationship with the facility control and it is necessary to make a directive report on the situation and appropriate emergency response through communication system with the base station.

Addressing Shortcomings in Contingency Standards of Care

Addressing Shortcomings in Contingency Standards of Care

Cyberattack Defense With Cyber-Physical Alert and Control Logic in Industrial Controllers

Power system substations have intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) that collect data and control other devices. As the bridge between the physical and cyber parts of the power system, IEDs capture some key system behaviors. Since adversaries can modify the system’s behavior, physical and cyber data can be used to infer characteristics about the adversary. In this article, we present alert and control logic for hardware-based power system defense using the physical data and communication status in substation IEDs for <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">cyber threat detection</i> , <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">cyber-physical contingency detection and response</i> , and <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">physical contingency identification and response</i> . The proposed alert and control logic routines are implemented in an industrial real-time automation controller using IEC 61131-3 in the resilient energy systems lab testbed. The goal is to help operators identify adversaries and protect the power grid in a cyber-physical environment. The effectiveness and accuracy of logic schemes are validated under different adversarial scenarios. Comparing the proposed schemes with an intrusion detection system, Snort, our results also suggest the benefits of using cyber and physical data to identify threats. The results also suggest the use of such hardware-based schemes with software algorithms in a next-generation cyber-physical energy management system, which can implement automatic control actions to protect power grids and its physical equipment against cyber threats.

The formation of the if–then contingency in implementation intention relieves anticipatory anxiety

Anxiety is characterized by anticipatory emotions as a response to potential threats. Despite knowledge of the effectivity of implementation intention in regulating emotion evoked by aversive stimuli, whether this method is effective in regulating anticipatory anxiety for potential threats remains unknown. To bridge this gap, this study applied a cue–target paradigm to induce anticipatory anxiety toward potential negative pictures among participants. Specifically, emotion feeling (no-regulation), goal intention, goal intention+response and implementation intention were administered to different groups to explore their regulatory effects on anticipatory anxiety. The results demonstrated a unique regulatory effect of implementation intention on anticipatory anxiety, regardless of the type of cue. However, this effect is absent under the goal intention and goal intention+response conditions. These findings suggest that implementation intention is effective in downregulating anticipatory anxiety. In addition, its regulatory effect cannot be attributed to a mere goal setup or the setup of goal and response combination, but should be accounted for by the setup of the situation–response contingency in addition to goal representation.

Algorithm and Application of Multi-modal Evacuation Strategy for Intercity Railway Disruption in a Metropolitan Area

When an emergency situation befalls the intercity high-speed railway system, response contingency always focuses on mitigating the interruption to the original operation. This study addresses an evacuation problem for stranded passengers by coordination of multi-modal transit, with the immediate recovery of transport corridors and the redesign of transit routes. A multi-modal transit-based evacuation strategy is proposed through a bi-level optimization model. The model simultaneously formulates the selection of lines, vehicle scheduling, and passenger assignment that trades off passenger delay versus operating cost. The upper level uses an integer program to determine the transit lines and fleet size, and the lower level assigns passengers onto multi-modal routes considering their perceptions of transfer and vehicle congestion. A hybrid heuristic algorithm is proposed to solve the complexity from back-up conditions and nonlinear on-route utility. The case study is based on a disruption to the Beijing-Hebei metropolitan transit system, which is composed of five transit modes, to analyze the conflicting objectives under different mode combinations and network topologies. The adaptation for demand distribution with regard to trip distance is studied to recommend the vehicle composition in a realistic situation. The application and analysis procedure aim to enhance the decision-support system. Results show that mode combinations could provide time and cost saving solutions and extend the Pareto frontier. Effectiveness of mode combination is not equivalent to different demand distributions. Multi-modal collaboration would effectively accelerate the evacuation and save costs. These findings may be of interest to decision makers developing efficient response strategies to improve post-disruption resilience.

Group processes and interoperability: A longitudinal case study analysis of the UK's civil contingency response to Covid‐19

Our case study explored a Local Resilience Forum's (LRF) civil contingency response to COVID‐19 in the United Kingdom. We undertook 19 semistructured ethnographic longitudinal interviews, between March 25, 2020 and February 17, 2021, with a Director of a Civil Contingencies Unit and a Chief Fire Officer who both played key roles within their LRF. Within these interviews, we focused on their strategic level decision‐making and how their relationship with national government impacted on local processes and outcomes. Using a form of grounded theory, our data describe the chronological evolution of an increasingly effective localized approach toward outbreak control and a growing resilience in dealing with concurrent emergency incidents. However, we also highlight how national government organizations imposed central control on aspects of the response in ways that undermined or misaligned with local preparedness. Thus, during emergencies, central governments can undermine the principle of subsidiarity and damage the ways in which LRFs can help scaffold local resilience. Our work contributes to the theoretical understanding of the social psychological factors that can shape the behaviour of responder agencies during a prolonged crisis. In particular, the implications of our analysis for advancing our conceptual understanding of strategic decision‐making during emergencies are discussed.

Oil Spill Environmental Risk Assessment and Mapping in Coastal China Using Automatic Identification System (AIS) Data

The rapid expansion in shipping traffic, oil tankers, and oil field exploration in coastal and marine areas has, inevitably, resulted in the occurrence of many oil spill accidents. Oil spill accidents, which cause serious socio-economic, health, and environmental risks in coastal and marine areas, are a global concern. An oil spill pollution risk distribution map, combining multiple spill sources, is an effective tool by which to identify high-risk areas, which may help decision-makers in adopting contingency response and integrated coastal management. However, the assessment of oil spill distribution and risk assessment has been restricted, due to their heavy dependence on laboratory experiments and model simulations lacking reliable shipping data, which often derive inaccurate mapping results. This study combines the automatic identification system (AIS) and other data to precisely quantify the spatial extent of accident risk in coastal China. Based on oil quantity, oil spill rate, and accident probability, the ship, oil storage tank, submarine pipeline, and oil platform accidents spill risk index is analyzed. Next, combined with the sensitive degree of a coastal area, considering environmental and social issues, the oil spill environmental risk index is calculated. The oil spill pollution risk level is classified into five categories based on the oil spill pollution risk index, namely the low-risk zone, relatively low-risk zone, moderate-risk zone, relatively high-risk zone, and high-risk zone. The relatively high oil spill environmental risk concentration zone is located in the Bohai Sea, inter-border area between the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea, the Yangtze River estuary, south of the Taiwan Strait, and the Pearl River estuary. The high-risk zone in the Bohai Sea is 36,018 km2 in area, with an average risk value of 32.23, whereas the high-risk area in the Pearl River estuary is only 14,007 km2. The high-risk area proportions in Tianjin are 23.5%, while those in Fujian, Hainan, Jiangsu, and Guangxi are very low. The low-risk area proportion in Hainan Province is 62%, while the value in Tianjin is only 2.9%. This study will be helpful in assisting decision-makers in mapping the influence area of oil spills and adopting the important strategies and effective management and conservation countermeasures for ship accidents in the coastal areas of China.