Digital Humanitarianism in a Pandemic Outbreak: An Empirical Study of Antecedents and Consequences

Abstract

Based on the resource-based view and the thematic analysis of digital humanitarianism, information and Communication Technology (ICT) success, and the potential value of Crowd Sourcing (CS), this study proposes a Digital Humanitarianism Capability (DHC) model. The study extends the above research streams by examining the direct effects of DHC on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), as well as the mediating effects of process-oriented dynamic capabilities (PODC) on the relationship between DHC and DRR. To test our proposed research model, we used an online survey to collect data from 150 District Magistrates (DMs) of India who is handling the COVID-19 Pandemic Management. The findings confirm the value of the entanglement conceptualization of the hierarchical DHC model, which has both direct and indirect impacts on DRR. The results also confirm the strong mediating role of PODC in improving insights and enhancing DRR. Finally, implications for practice and research are discussed.

Digitalization in Disaster Risk Reduction: The Use of Smartphones to Enhance the Safety of Informal Settlements in Iringa, Tanzania

“…For example, Google funded a project in Tanzania to reach ambulances through smartphones and a Bluetooth emergency dispatch software (Bloomberg Businessweek 2016 ). Satellite and geospatial big data are playing a major role in early warning systems and relief operations, also through participatory GIS mapping or reporting, such as the mapping of informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya (Hagen 2011 ) or flood mapping in Jakarta, Indonesia (Kusumo et al 2017 ).…”