A model of household preparedness for earthquakes:

how individuals make meaning of earthquake

information and how this influences preparedness
Julia S. Becker Douglas Paton David M. Johnston Kevin R. Ronan
Received: 21 October 2011 / Accepted: 20 May 2012 / Published online: 16 June 2012
_ Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012

Abstract

One way to reduce the risk from earthquakes is for individuals to undertake
preparations for earthquakes at home. Common preparation measures include
gathering
together survival items, undertaking mitigation actions, developing a household
emergency
plan, gaining survival skills or participating in wider social preparedness actions. While
current earthquake education programmes advocate that people undertake a variety of
these activities, actual household preparedness remains at modest levels. Effective
earthquake
education is inhibited by an incomplete understanding of how the preparedness
process works. Previous research has focused on understanding the influence
individual
cognitive processes have on the earthquake preparedness process but has been limited
in
identifying other influences posed by the wider social contextual environment. This
project
used a symbolic interactionism perspective to explore the earthquake preparedness
process
through a series of qualitative interviews with householders in three New Zealand urban
locations. It investigated earthquake information that individuals are exposed to, how
people make meaning of this information and how this relates to undertaking actual
preparedness
measures. During the study, the relative influence of cognitive, emotive and
societal factors on the preparedness process was explored and the interactions
between
these identified. A model of the preparedness process based on the interviews was
developed and is presented in this paper.
Boxer, Feinstein Earthquake Preparedness and Monitoring Bill Moves Forward:
Bill Reauthorizing Programs to Reduce Risks and Damage to Infrastructure from
Earthquakes Passes Committee Unanimously
Congressional Documents and Publications. (May 5, 2011).

Abstract
Senator Feinstein said, The probabilities of a major earthquake in California in the next
30 years are 99.7%. [...] improving the resiliency of our buildings is a high priority and
this bill would fund the effort to find the most cost-effective methods.
Building resiliency: a cross-sectional study
examining relationships among health-related
quality of life, well-being, and disaster
preparedness

Abstract

Background:
Worldwide, disaster exposure and consequences are rising. Disaster risk in New
Zealand is amplified by
island geography, isolation, and ubiquitous natural hazards. Wellington, the capital city,
has vital needs for evacuation
preparedness and resilience to the devastating impacts and increasing uncertainties of
earthquake and tsunami disasters.
While poor quality of life (QoL) is widely-associated with low levels of engagement in
many health-protective behaviors,
the relationships among health-related quality of life (HrQoL), well-being, and
preparedness are virtually unknown.
Methods:
We hypothesized that QoL and well-being affect household evacuation preparedness.
We performed a quantitative epidemiologic survey (cross-sectional design) of
Wellington adults. Our investigation assessed health promoting attributes that build
resiliency, conceptualized as health-protective attitudes and behaviors. Multidimensional
QoL variables were measured using validated psychometric scales and analyzed for
associations with evacuation preparedness, and we determined whether age and
gender affected these relationships.
Results:
We received 695 survey responses (28.5% response rate; margin of error 3.8%; 80%
statistical power to detect true correlations of 0.11 or greater). Correlational analyses
showed statistically significant positive associations with evacuation preparedness for
spiritual well-being, emotional well-being, and life satisfaction. No associations were
found for mental health, social well-being, or gender; physical health was weakly
negatively associated. Evacuation preparedness increased with age. Regression
analyses showed that overall health and well-being explained 4.6-6.8% of
the variance in evacuation preparedness. Spiritual well-being was the only QoL variable
that significantly and uniquely explained variance in preparedness.
Conclusions: How well-being influences preparedness is complex and deeply personal.
The data indicate that multidimensional readiness is essential, and meaningfulness is
an important factor. Inadequate levels of tangible preparedness actions are
accompanied by gaps in intangible readiness aspects, such as: 1) errors in perceived
exposure to and salience of natural hazards, yielding circumscribed risk assessments;
2) unfamiliarity with the scope and span of
preparedness; 3) underestimating disaster consequences; and 4) misinterpreting the
personal resources required forself-managing disaster and uncertainty.
Earthquake: The risk of disaster
Anonymous. Risk Management 42.4 (Apr 1995): SS19.

Abstract (summary)
San Francisco and the Bay Area have experienced hundreds of
small earthquakes since the Great Earthquakeof 1906 devastated the city. In 1950, city
planners began enforcing more stringent building codes to guard against massive
property damage. With reinsurance pools currently short of capital to protect against
exposure to massive quake claims, the insurance industry is searching for
solutions. Earthquake preparedness, says Jeff Pettegrew, incoming president of the
Golden Gate chapter of RIMS, is the essence of risk management.
Assessing building vulnerability to earthquake
and tsunami hazard using remotely sensed data
M. Muck H. Taubenbock J. Post S. Wegscheider
G. Strunz S. Sumaryono F. A. Ismail

Abstract Quantification of building vulnerability to earthquake and tsunami hazards is a

key component for the implementation of structural mitigation strategies fostering the
essential shift from post-disaster crisis reaction to preventive measures. Facing
accelerating urban sprawl and rapid structural change in modern urban agglomerations
in areas of high seismic and tsunami risk, the synergetic use of remote sensing and civil
engineering methods offers a great potential to assess building structures up-to-date
and area-wide. This paper provides a new methodology contextualizing key
components in quantifying
building vulnerability with regard to sequenced effects of seismic and tsunami impact.
The study was carried out in Cilacap, a coastal City in Central Java, Indonesia. Central
is the identification of significant correlations between building characteristics, easily
detectable by remote sensing techniques, and detailed in situ measurements stating
precise building vulnerability information. As a result, potential vertical evacuation
shelters in the study area are detected and a realistic vulnerability assessment of the
exposed building stock is given. These findings obtained allow for prioritization of
intervention measures such as awareness and preparedness strategies and can be
implemented in local disaster management.