Trial by Fire: natural hazards, mixed-methods and cultural research

Abstract

This paper considers the issues of research 'relevance' and 'use' to reflect upon a cultural geography research project on bushfire that did not begin with any specific aim of being useful to policy makers but which has garnered considerable and ongoing interest from a broad audience. It provides an example of how the integration of quantitative and qualitative research methods and data can enhance research into cultural aspects of natural hazards whilst simultaneously playing a key role in ensuring that the research results are of interest to a wide range of groups. Using a mixed-methods research approach was found to provide insight into complex factors that influence attitudes and actions towards bushfire amongst diverse landholders in ruralÁurban interface areas in south-east Australia. We argue that mixed-methods research is a powerful tool in building and enhancing a cultural geography that has policy relevance, retains analytical depth, and is acceptable to risk managers. The ability of cultural geography through mixedmethods research to illuminate how socio-cultural processes are central to environmental attitudes and preparedness behaviour has direct relevance to recent international discussions of how to manage the vulnerability of the growing number of people living in bushfire-prone ruralÁurban interface areas.

Expanding protection motivation theory: investigating an application to animal owners and emergency responders in bushfire emergencies

“…Eriksen, Gill et al [73] and Paton [12] note the significance of this decision to live in areas of higher fire danger - as people seek refuge from the intensity of urban living, the attraction to a place of peace and beauty is strong. An aesthetically pleasing location, chosen because of its flora and fauna, is as much a part of experiencing and achieving good mental health as its destruction by fire is the reverse.…”

Gendered Dynamics of Wildland Firefighting in Australia

“…The gender, positionality and conduct of the interviewer (the lead author) may influence the answering of questions by participants depending on shared knowledge, cultural differences, and trust. Hence, a semi-structured ethnographic style interviewing approach discussed by Riley and Harvey (2007), Riessman (2008) and (Eriksen et al 2011) was employed to create possibilities for sharing alternative, humanized narratives.…”

Cultures and Disasters: Understanding Cultural Framings in Disaster Risk ReductionF.Krüger, G.Bankoff, T.Cannon, B.Orlowski and E.L.F.Shipper. Routledge, London and New York, 2015, xv + 282 pp, ISBN 978 0 415 74560 4 (paperback), £31.99

“…This may explain why the editors consider it necessary to include a starting premise that states: ‘the significance of ‘culture’ must be understood and incorporated into any attempt to deal with natural hazards, rather than being viewed as largely irrelevant’ (p. 2). The ‘cultural turn’ has long been an established fact within human geography, where considering culture is a given in most cases and the focus instead in on the real challenge of how to understand and apply culture(s) (Gill, ; Eriksen et al ., ). The collaborative and applied research approach of many geographers focusing on, for example hazards mitigation, disaster resilience, and natural resource management, has much to offer scholars and practitioners within the field of DRR.…”