A different type of disaster response digital volunteer: Looking behind the scenes to reveal coordinating actions of disaster knowledge workers

Abstract

Researchers have established the prominent role digital volunteers play during crises and disasters. From self‐organizing to annotating public data, these volunteers are now a fixture in disaster research. However, we know much less about how these volunteers function, behind the public scene, when using private social media as a disaster unfolds and people need to be rescued. This qualitative study identified the emergent helping roles along with the skillsets and abilities that helped volunteers perform these behind‐the‐scene roles during the Hurricane Harvey flooding in 2017. Using in‐depth interviews along with captured images in private social media, we find these volunteers resembled organizational knowledge workers. We identify nine specific communicating and coordinating actions that these disaster knowledge workers performed. The contributions of these findings centre on implications for disaster response and management.

Independence, trust, and loyalty. The county governor's coordination of public and voluntary resources in crises in Norway

“…The Norwegian experience reported here is based on systematic and preplanned participation from voluntary organisations in emergency preparedness and crisis management. Studies from other countries tend to concentrate on volunteers as individuals, more spontaneously organising themselves for example as “disaster knowledge worker” or as “community champions,” still becoming great resources in the neighbourhoods and local communities (Mao et al, 2021; Smith et al, 2021).…”

Could virtual volunteerism enhance information resilience in a nuclear emergency? The potential role of disaster knowledge workers and virtual emergent groups

“…Whittaker et al, 2015;Lachance, 2021). Examples of virtual volunteerism are the actions of unaffiliated volunteer disaster knowledge workers (Smith et al, 2021) and emergent groups relying on virtual means (Reuter et al, 2012). The communicative role of both actors in disaster response has been documented.…”

“…Accordingly, in addition to physical emergent groups, there are also virtual emergent groups, which "originate in the Internet and mainly carry out their activities online" (Reuter et al, 2012). Similarly, in addition to spontaneous volunteers who converge on the physical site of the disaster, there are unaffiliated volunteer disaster knowledge workers who operate "behind the scenes providing primarily communicative and coordinating support" (Smith et al, 2021). In addition to "pure online volunteering," there are various combinations of traditional on-the-ground volunteering and virtual volunteering (e.g.…”

“…Ideally, it will support the processes of sensemaking and sense-giving and consequently increase situational awareness in crises and disasters (e.g. Smith et al, 2021). Virtual volunteerism can then play a positive role in strengthening the information resilience of societies.…”

Public engagement during full‐scale exercises: Dimensions of trust and community resilience

“…Members of the public typically have only a limited role to play in FSXs, often being present as role-players whose primary function is to facilitate the learning for responders. Recently, the value of examining the participation of volunteers and nonemergency staff who assist in response have been recognised (e.g., Smith et al, 2021), and this extends equally to FSX. As such, opportunities are arguably being lost to direct FSX events in such a way that they promote learning and engagement for the public.…”