IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jscscx/v14y2025i4p248-d1638732.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Public Support for Disaster Risk Reduction: Evidence from The Bahamas Before and After Hurricane Dorian

Author

Listed:
  • Barry S. Levitt

    (Department of Politics and International Relations, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA)

  • Richard S. Olson

    (Extreme Events Institute and Department of Politics and International Relations, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA)

Abstract

Studies in public policy have suggested that disasters can potentially serve as “focusing events”, catalyzing significant changes to disaster risk reduction (DRR) policies and practices. How and why this effect does (or does not) ensue, and for how long, are less well understood. This article tests hypotheses about the nature and duration of the impact of a major hazard event on public support for DRR policies and their implementation. It does so by analyzing survey data collected in The Bahamas before and, crucially, at multiple intervals after a massive 2019 storm, the Category 5 Hurricane Dorian. Results suggest that experiencing a major hurricane boosts public support for DRR. This effect was observed one month after the event; support declined at three months but remained elevated for nearly two years afterwards. At the individual level, support for DRR was also strongly associated with the perception of future disaster risk—but was not associated with any measure of direct harm from the event. These findings support the notion that disasters may open “windows of opportunity” for improving policy implementation, in part by changing public opinion broadly and not just among those most acutely affected.

Suggested Citation

  • Barry S. Levitt & Richard S. Olson, 2025. "Public Support for Disaster Risk Reduction: Evidence from The Bahamas Before and After Hurricane Dorian," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-16, April.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:14:y:2025:i:4:p:248-:d:1638732
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/248/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/248/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gisela Wachinger & Ortwin Renn & Chloe Begg & Christian Kuhlicke, 2013. "The Risk Perception Paradox—Implications for Governance and Communication of Natural Hazards," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 33(6), pages 1049-1065, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sisira S. Withanachchi & Ilia Kunchulia & Giorgi Ghambashidze & Rami Al Sidawi & Teo Urushadze & Angelika Ploeger, 2018. "Farmers’ Perception of Water Quality and Risks in the Mashavera River Basin, Georgia: Analyzing the Vulnerability of the Social-Ecological System through Community Perceptions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-26, August.
    2. Rieger-Fels, Markus, 2025. "Climate risk perceptions of businesses: The role of experience and objective risk factors," Working Papers 01/25, Institut für Mittelstandsforschung (IfM) Bonn.
    3. Ling Jia & Queena K. Qian & Frits Meijer & Henk Visscher, 2020. "Stakeholders’ Risk Perception: A Perspective for Proactive Risk Management in Residential Building Energy Retrofits in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-25, April.
    4. Jones, Lindsey & d'Errico, Marco, 2019. "Whose resilience matters? Like-for-like comparison of objective and subjective evaluations of resilience," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 1-1.
    5. Huang, Yi, 2021. "Salience of hazard disclosure and house prices: Evidence from Christchurch, New Zealand," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    6. Gisela Wachinger & Ortwin Renn & Sarah-Kristina Wist & Sinika-Marie Steinhilber & Ulrike Triemer, 2014. "Using participation to create resilience: how to involve citizens in designing a hospital system?," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 34(2), pages 208-223, June.
    7. H.M. Tuihedur Rahman & Gordon M. Hickey, 2020. "An Analytical Framework for Assessing Context-Specific Rural Livelihood Vulnerability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-26, July.
    8. Yuzuka KASHIWAGI & Yasuyuki TODO, 2022. "Trade Disruption and Risk Perception," Discussion papers 22086, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    9. Tianlong Yu & Hao Yang & Xiaowei Luo & Yifeng Jiang & Xiang Wu & Jingqi Gao, 2021. "Scientometric Analysis of Disaster Risk Perception: 2000–2020," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-19, December.
    10. repec:plo:pone00:0209013 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. S. A. Mashi & A. I. Inkani & Oghenejeabor Obaro & A. S. Asanarimam, 2020. "Community perception, response and adaptation strategies towards flood risk in a traditional African city," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 103(2), pages 1727-1759, September.
    12. Shuolin Geng & Qi Zhou & Mingjie Li & Dianxing Song & Yanjun Wen, 2021. "Spatial–temporal differences in disaster perception and response among new media users and the influence factors: a case study of the Shouguang Flood in Shandong province," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 105(2), pages 2241-2262, January.
    13. Yang, Ya Ling, 2020. "Comparison of public perception and risk management decisions of aircraft noise near Taoyuan and Kaohsiung International Airports," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    14. aus dem Moore, Nils & Brehm, Johannes & Breidenbach, Philipp & Ghosh, Arijit & Gruhl, Henri, 2022. "Flood risk perception after indirect flooding experience: Null results in the German housing market," Ruhr Economic Papers 976, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    15. Kevin Fox Gotham & Richard Campanella & Katie Lauve‐Moon & Bradford Powers, 2018. "Hazard Experience, Geophysical Vulnerability, and Flood Risk Perceptions in a Postdisaster City, the Case of New Orleans," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 38(2), pages 345-356, February.
    16. Fateh Mamine & Noure El Imène Boumali & Etienne Montaigne, 2020. "Why Farmers Adopt Agro-Industrial By-Products in Animal Feed? Lesson Learned in Algerian Case," Post-Print hal-02966547, HAL.
    17. Meiyan Gao & Zongmin Wang & Haibo Yang, 2022. "Review of Urban Flood Resilience: Insights from Scientometric and Systematic Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(14), pages 1-19, July.
    18. Mertens, Kewan & Jacobs, Liesbet & Maes, Jan & Poesen, Jean & Kervyn, Matthieu & Vranken, Liesbet, 2017. "Lower risk reduction intentions among households exposed to landslide risk: a tentative explanation," 2017 International Congress, August 28-September 1, 2017, Parma, Italy 261170, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    19. Nina Veflen & Joachim Scholderer & Solveig Langsrud, 2020. "Situated Food Safety Risk and the Influence of Social Norms," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 40(5), pages 1092-1110, May.
    20. Ronald L. Schumann & Kevin D. Ash & Gregg C. Bowser, 2018. "Tornado Warning Perception and Response: Integrating the Roles of Visual Design, Demographics, and Hazard Experience," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 38(2), pages 311-332, February.
    21. Joan Costa-i-Font & Cristina Vilaplana-Prieto, 2023. "Health System Trust and Compliance with Covid-19 Restrictions," CESifo Working Paper Series 10291, CESifo.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:14:y:2025:i:4:p:248-:d:1638732. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.