Featured Topic: Natural disaster preparedness

With parts of Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia battling wildfires and heatwaves, and several countries around the globe having been hit by earthquakes and floods in recent weeks, awareness of natural disasters is undoubtedly high. It’s difficult to predict these events, especially given their increasing frequency and severity, but a baseline level of preparedness can help to cope with the aftermath.

From the earliest issues of SBP, our authors have been interested in how people prepare for and respond to natural disasters, with Perry (1979) reporting on the contradictory findings of psychiatric versus sociological or psychological empirical research into the psychological consequences for survivors. Read on to discover his thoughts on how these perspectives can influence participant responses.

Karanci et al. (2005) conducted a longitudinal study of a training program on disaster awareness, finding that a year after program completion, respondents reported more disaster expectation, higher worry and loss estimation, and more preparedness behaviors. Once the natural disaster is in progress, having access to high-quality, reliable information is important for planning. Piotrowski and Armstrong (1998) looked at community residents’ preferred methods of obtaining news updates during a hurricane. They found that respondents preferred to get their news fix from local television and radio stations, although this trend may have changed following the widespread adoption of smart devices.

Preparedness covers not just the span of time before and during a disaster but also carries through to the period afterward. Hu et al. (2010) published a case study of a victim rescued after being buried under rubble for several days by an earthquake. They found that early psychological intervention reduced the likelihood of developing posttraumatic stress disorder, and that social support was particularly important for patient coping. Yang et al. (2010) surveyed middle school students after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake in China, mapping the relationships among psychological health, self-efficacy, social support, and coping strategies. An emotion-focused coping style was linked with higher pessimism, while those with high subjective social support and a problem-focused coping style showed improved self-efficacy and psychological health.

Taking a long-term perspective on reactions to natural disasters, Min (2007) compared tourist behavior in samples from Japan and the United States after an earthquake. Japanese tourists showed higher uncertainty avoidance, opting not to take a planned trip to the affected area, while tourists from the United States were more willing to jump on the plane regardless. Meanwhile, Han et al. (2012) conducted a longitudinal analysis of psychological symptoms after an earthquake. They reported that symptoms varied across gender and age groups (adults vs. adolescents) and recommended the development of tailored mental health interventions for coping with natural disasters.

Other papers in our archives and scheduled for forthcoming publication compare how disaster warnings are processed and acted upon among different ethnic groups, and examine news media consumption during an unfolding disaster situation. Keen to continue tracking the evolving research trends in this area from a behavioral and social psychology perspective? Sign up for a personal subscription to SBP to gain access to several thousand papers spanning the fields of social, behavioral, and developmental psychology.

Detecting psychopathological reactions to natural disaster: A methodological note – Ronald W. Perry, 1979, 7(2), 173–178.

Mass media preferences in disaster: A study of Hurricane Danny – Chris Piotrowski and Terry Armstrong, 1998, 26(4), 341–346.

Impact of a community disaster awareness training program in Turkey: Does it influence hazard-related cognitions and preparedness behaviors – Ayse Nuray Karanci, Bahattin Aksit, and Gulay Dirik, 2005, 33(3), 243–258.

Early psychological intervention following a natural disaster: A study with a victim buried under rubble for 124 hours – Xuehui Hu, Yebing Yang, Li Liu, Xufeng Liu, and Yang Tong, 2010, 38(1), 71–74.

Self-efficacy, social support, and coping strategies of adolescent earthquake survivors in China – Jun Yang, Yebing Yang, Xufeng Liu, Jianquan Tian, Xia Zhu, and Danmin Miao, 38(9), 1219–1228.

Tourism behavior toward disasters: A cross-cultural comparison – Jennifer C. H. Min, 2007, 35(8), 1031–1032.

Responses over time of child and adolescent survivors to the 2008 Wenchuan, China earthquake – Li Han, Yan Zhang, and Yong Zheng, 2012, 40(7), 1147–1152.