Bridging Warning and Adaptation Addressing Risk Communication Strategies for Short-Term Natural Hazard Warnings and Long-Term Risk Adaptation – A Scoping Review

Effective risk communication is a core element of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030), emphasizing the importance of early warning and public information in mitigating disaster impacts. However, existing research often treats risk communication as a uniform process, lacking systematic differentiation between short-term warnings for acute hazards and long-term adaptation strategies. This scoping review analyzes 194 peer-reviewed studies to examine how risk communication strategies vary according to the temporal dimension (short-term, long-term, or hybrid), hazard types by group (atmospheric, geophysical, hydrological, and biophysi-cal), and intended purpose. Communication goals are categorized through an inductively developed approach—Act, Prepare, and Aware—and mapped across the four major hazard groups. A focused analysis of 141 studies reveals that differences, such as atmospheric hazards, are predominantly addressed through hybrid (41%) and short-term (25%) strategies, often combining real-time alerts with awareness and preparedness. Geophysical haz-ards are strongly associated with hybrid approaches (43%), which emphasize participatory and educational for-mats. Hydrological hazards display the widest variation, combining short-term, hybrid, and complex strategies. Purely long-term formats, however, are rarely found across all hazard types (1.4%), despite their strategic im-portance for resilience. Findings suggest that the choice of communication strategy can be tied to the nature and dynamics of each hazard type. This review identifies key patterns, research gaps, and a structured basis for further evaluation and the development of risk communication. It provides an overview of current literature and guidance for developing context-sensitive, temporally integrated communication strategies.