An Assessment of the Cultural Appropriateness of Emergency Preparedness Communication for Low Income Minorities

Warning the world of extreme events: A global perspective on risk communication for natural and technological disaster

“…This example highlights the importance of cultural understanding and the need to provide culturally appropriate warnings. Unfortunately, there is evidence that cultural sensitivity is largely inadequate when tailoring the content and dissemination of bioterrorism warnings for vulnerable populations of low-income Latinos and African-Americans within the United States (James et al, 2007).…”

“…However, there is a concern that the mere translation and presentation of message content will not be sufficient in communicating the hazard warning because it may not be acceptable or accurate to the target population (Andrulis et al, 2007). Moreover, with textbased warnings, there is a strong likelihood that message content will not be understood because of readability factors associated with overly-formalized language and a lack of cultural sensitivity (James et al, 2007). Thus, efforts to address the language difficulties of international warnings might begin by decreasing the use of text-based content.…”

Assessing Cultural Competency in School Crisis Plans

“…Gaining momentum across academic disciplines, an increasing number of publications are aimed at educating human service providers about the unique needs of individuals from diverse backgrounds (Frisby & Reynolds, 2005;Griner & Smith 2006;Heath, Lee, & Nj, 2009;James, Hawkins, & Rowel, 2007;Spurgeon, 2006;Sue & Sue, 2007). In line with this general trend, over the past several decades practitioners who offer crisis intervention services have increasingly emphasized the need to match services with the unique needs of individuals and groups (Abramson & Garfield, 2006;Heath, Nickerson, Annandale, Kemple, & Dean, 2009;Kemple et al, 2006;Pedersen, 2003;U.S.…”

Emergency Risk Communication

“…Studies have shown that that low-income African Americans have been less likely to use the Internet to seek information because of a lack of access to computers (James et al 2007). Studies have shown that that low-income African Americans have been less likely to use the Internet to seek information because of a lack of access to computers (James et al 2007).…”