Recent policy changes highlight the need for citizens to take adaptive actions to reduce flood-related impacts. Here, we argue that these changes represent a wider behavioral turn in flood risk management (FRM). The behavioral turn is based on three fundamental assumptions: first, that the motivations of citizens to take adaptive actions can be well understood so that these motivations can be targeted in the practice of FRM; second, that private adaptive measures and actions are effective in reducing flood risk; and third, that individuals have the capacities to implement such measures. We assess the extent to which the assumptions can be supported by empirical evidence. We do this by engaging with three intellectual catchments. We turn to research by psychologists and other behavioral scientists which focus on the sociopsychological factors which influence individual motivations (Assumption 1). We engage with economists, engineers, and quantitative risk analysts who explore the extent to which individuals can reduce flood related impacts by quantifying the effectiveness and efficiency of household-level adaptive measures (Assumption 2). We converse with human geographers and sociologists who explore the types of capacities households require to adapt to and cope with threatening events
Abstract. Empirical evidence of the relationship between social support and
post-disaster mental health provides support for a general beneficial effect
of social support (main-effect model; Wheaton, 1985). From a theoretical
perspective, a buffering effect of social support on the negative
relationship between disaster-related stress and mental health also seems
plausible (stress-buffering model; Wheaton, 1985). Previous studies, however, (a) have
paid less attention to the buffering effect of social support and (b) have mainly relied on interpersonal support (but not collective-level
support such as community resilience) when investigating this issue. This previous
work might have underestimated the effect of support on post-disaster mental
health. Building on a sample of residents in Germany recently affected by
flooding (N=118), we show that community resilience to flooding (but not
general interpersonal social support) buffered against the negative effects
of flooding on post-disaster mental health. The results support the
stress-buffering model and call for a more detailed look at the relationship
between support and resilience and post-disaster adjustment, including
collective-level variables.
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