Temple University Survey Presented at American Public Health Association Meeting
PHILADELPHIA — Katrina revealed the impact of poor communications on the public during a disaster: chaos, distress and alarm. For future disaster communications, a new Temple University survey of Pennsylvanians bears important findings, including how people prefer to get information, which public agencies they’re most confident in, attitudes toward emergency preparedness and actual preparedness. The findings will be presented December 14 at the American Public Health Association meeting in Philadelphia.
“The catastrophic failure of the emergency response system in the wake of Hurricane Katrina reinforces the need to better understand the public’s concerns. This will help state and local officials effectively communicate before, during and after disasters,” said researcher, Sarah Bass, Ph.D.
Bass defines effective risk communications as timely, relevant and true.
“Effective communications during a disaster provides for people’s doubts,” she explained. “It can also reduce the mental stress that comes with anticipating and coping with disasters.”
Bass and her colleagues analyzed survey results from 1500 families throughout Pennsylvania on their concerns, attitudes and practices regarding emergency preparedness.
As expected, people universally rely on television and radio for information during an emergency. But surprisingly, say the researchers, half of respondents would go to their clergy for information, highlighting the role that non-traditional communicators play in emergency response.
A considerable proportion of the population is not fully comfortable with national policies about preparedness and homeland security: 25-35 percent disagree that new Homeland Security laws make them feel safer and 47 percent express concern about losing privacy because of these laws.
“In light of the recent devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the need for strong confidence and trust in the government is important to response and recovery,” said Bass.
The majority was aware of national efforts to improve disaster preparedness, but relatively few were aware of state’s efforts to increase household preparation, including the Pennsylvania campaign to educate the public about “sheltering in place.”
Most believed they were prepared for emergencies, but actually weren’t. Much of the preparedness involved purchasing items like batteries and duct tape. Yet, what experts say is the most important action -- making a family plan -- was only completed by 31 percent of respondents.
Bass believes these findings can help governments create more timely and effective messages, as well as choose and prepare appropriate spokespersons for the next event. She is currently working on several related projects, including effective emergency messaging for different ethnicities and media training for emergency responders.....