Pakistan suffered large-scale flooding in summer 2010 that caused damage amounting to approximately USD 43 billion, claimed the lives of at least 1,700 people, and negatively affected some 20 million others. Observers have debated the degree to which social capital plays a role in recovery after a catastrophe of this magnitude. Using new survey data on 450 residents impacted by the disaster, this study found that, controlling for various confounding factors, the social capital levels of victims serve as robust correlates of life recovery. Other important variables connected with recovery include education and income, family size, occupation, material damage suffered, stability of home, and trauma experience. The findings point to a number of relevant policy recommendations, most notably that during and following major shocks, disaster managers should work to keep the social networks of victims intact so that they can benefit from interaction with family, friends, and neighbours.
This study aims to explore the support and impede factors of entrepreneurial activities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. By using the qualitative method, 18 in-depth interviews were conducted with entrepreneurs operating micro-, small- and medium-scale enterprises. Interviews were transcribed for content analysis to generate themes using NVivo 12. COVID-19 has adversely affected the entrepreneurial activity in Pakistan was a key theme found after analysis. Three main categories were found as situations provoking business decline and their manifestation, entrepreneurial actions and reactions to COVID-19 crisis, and their futuristic plans amidst COVID-19. This research highlights issues entrepreneurs face to follow protocols of lockdown, social distancing, and operational hours. The findings of this study contribute to the scholarship of entrepreneurship and areas for the empirical investigation to develop efficient ecosystems to support entrepreneurs. This study suggests government and non-government stakeholders devise strategies for entrepreneurial revival post-COVID-19. This is probably one of the first qualitative assessment of the likely effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on entrepreneurship. It also recommends interesting related research areas and suggestions on how to empower entrepreneurs to overcome it.
The 2010 Pakistan floods affected a tenth of the population of that nation and one‐fifth of its land, killing more than 1,700 people. Many observers have wondered the degree to which mass emergencies affect how residents see their decision‐makers. We use original survey data from 450 Pakistan residents to evaluate the degree to which social and institutional trust were correlated with flood damage. Controlling for gender, educational level, occupation and flood experience, high material loss during the flood was negatively correlated with postflood trust levels. In contrast, housing stability and perceived fairness in the distribution of disaster aid were positively correlated with postflood levels of trust. Our study confirms past research on the variability of trust in postdisaster situations and the importance of investing in state–civil society relations.
To understand the extent to which material damage suffered by the flood victims correlated with views on political leadership. Using original data on 450 residents affected by the 2010 Pakistan floods collected through surveys, we carried out multiple regression analysis to understand the connections between flood damage, gender, annual income and education on the flood victims' perception of political leadership. We use open ended questions to allow for qualitative analysis along with a quantitative analysis of patterns across the sample. Our analyses revealed that material damage suffered by the flood victims serves as a robust predictor of their faith in the political leadership. Other important correlates of feelings about leadership included annual income, educational level, family size and perceived fairness in the distribution of disaster assistance. Past research has suggested that efficient and responsive leadership has the potential to minimize the impact of disaster. Our data suggest that disasters influence the attitudes of people regarding their leadership. We theorize that residents envision higher levels of disaster damage as a result of ineffective leadership; most broadly, damage erodes peoples' faith in their leaders.
A growing body of evidence underscores that social capital mitigates the impact of natural hazards such as floods. But we know less about the distribution of social ties in developing countries regularly hit by shocks. Our study examined the differences between demographic groups in South Punjab, Pakistan affected by the 2010 floods, comparing respondents’ levels of social capital measured through proxies such as received social support, perceived community cohesion, accessibility to leadership, and general level of trust. We carried out univariate and multivariate analyses of factors including gender, education, occupation, landholding, family size, annual income, number of livestock, and home stability. Using data collected in face-to-face interviews with 450 flood survivors, our analysis showed no statistically significant difference in the flood victims’ scores on all four scales based on gender and family size. However, education, occupation, landholding, annual income, and home stability statistically correlated with levels of social capital. Respondents with high levels of education, high levels of land, higher home stability, and a government job typically had higher scores in all four measurements of social ties. Our results show strong inequality in the distribution of social capital, with better connections and assistance coming to those who already have better socioeconomic positions in society.
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