Socially resilient: social media in times of natural disasters

Overview

Project status: In progress

The aim of this project is to help reduce Australia's vulnerability to natural hazards by offering new insight and perspectives on the role of the internet, especially social media, in supporting community resilience. The project will achieve this by undertaking research into people's information experiences in social media during times of natural disasters.

The project will use interviews and observation go gather data into when, where, why and how people use social media as part of their information experiences in times of natural disasters. The project will take place in both physical and virtual locations. Physical locations will include two cities recently affected by natural disasters. Interviews will be conducted with individuals in the affected regions. Virtual locations will be social media spaces that have been used to provide information about recent natural disasters. Observation will be conducted on social media spaces during particular times of crisis.

The outcomes from this project will include:

  • a knowledge base describing people's information experiences in social media during times of natural disasters that can be used to establish evidence-based actions and decisions
  • a framework for best practice in the use of social media to support information experiences in times of natural disasters
  • an interim and final project report
  • resources, including publications in journals and conferences (following project closure).

Become a participant

We're looking for residents of Brisbane and Townsville who have used social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, to provide or receive information during recent natural disasters. Find out what's involved:

Read details

Grantor

This research project is funded by the auDA Foundation.

Research leader
Research team
QUT External collaborators
Project Evaluator

Dr Rebecca Eynon (Oxford Internet Institute)

Project Reference Group
  • Gerard Byrne (Emergency Management Queensland)
  • Craig Evans (Brisbane City Council)
  • Warren Cheetham (Townsville City Council)
  • Scott Leonard (Local Government Association of Queensland)
Organisational unit
Lead unit Science and Engineering Faculty
Start date
1st August 2011
End date
31st July 2012
Keywords
information experience, social media, natural disasters, ethnography

Contact

Professor Helen Partridge
 

Details

Natural disasters, such as floods, fires and cyclones are a major source of loss of life and property in Australia. When a natural disaster occurs, access to timely, accurate and credible information can save lives, safeguard property and reduce fear and anxiety among affected communities.

Social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter are being used more and more by agencies to establish and maintain a flow of information to the individuals and communities they support in times of natural disasters. In addition to official sources, community driven sites also provide useful information and instead of merely being consumers of information, members of the public can now become partners and collaborators with official agencies supporting communities during times of great uncertainty.

However at the moment very little is known about the information experiences of members of the public during times of disaster – both generally and within social media more specifically - for example: 

  • Where and how do individuals seek information in times of a natural disaster?
  • When is it most needed?
  • Why do some people use social media and others don’t?
  • What type of social media is preferred? 
  • How does social media fit alongside the other more traditional sources of information such as TV and newspapers?

Consequently, government agencies and community groups involved in sustaining communities in times of disaster have a limited evidence-base to inform the services, products and policies they provide which has serious implications for supporting individuals and communities in times of crisis. Research undertaken for this project will help to fill this gap.

This project will help reduce Australia’s vulnerability to natural hazards by establishing a knowledge base that will enable government agencies, community groups and policy makers to make evidence-based decisions on the role of social media in disaster management. The knowledge base developed in the proposed project will ensure that the internet has a real and meaningful role to play in helping to save lives, safeguard property and reduce fear and anxiety in Australian communities during times of crisis.

Become a participant

We're looking for residents of Brisbane and Townsville who have used social media (Facebook, Twitter) to provide or receive information during recent natural disasters. Find out what's involved:

Information for prospective participants (PDF file, 304.51 KB)

Privacy, confidentiality and consent (PDF file, 370.78 KB)