Integrating social media features into a cell phone alert system for emergency situations

Drawing on the contingency theory of strategic conflict management, this study examines how the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) used Twitter to communicate during Hurricane Harvey. A content analysis was conducted on tweets (N = 273) by using stances along the contingency's continuum, finding that the USCG frequently adopted stances on both sides of the continuum's spectrum throughout the disaster event. The analysis of USCG tweets provides a real‐world case study of how Twitter is used by organizations to strategically communicate with the public during a disaster event. Like many disaster aid organizations, the USCG must balance competing goals of assisting the impacted population, while continuing to secure funding from the U.S. government. The current study contributes to contingency theory of strategic conflict management literature by applying the theory to a disaster, providing tangible evidence that disaster communication research should consider incorporating different stances across the continuum, sometimes simultaneously, that could help guide strategies, ultimately helping the organization and public being affected during a disaster.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the U.S. Coast Guard's stance agility on Twitter during Hurricane Harvey

Boman

Valiavska

Bramlett

et al. 2020

“…Along the same lines, many studies have been published on the use of social media as complementary channels for emergency alerts (van Dijl, Zebel, & Gutteling, 2018;Eriksson & Olsson, 2016;Helsloot & Groenendaal, 2013). As a matter of fact, social media usage is one of the most popular online activities.…”

Section: Rele Vant Liter Aturementioning

confidence: 98%

A mathematical model for the diffusion of emergency warning messages during CBRNe emergencies

D’Arienzo

Paolo

Chiacchiararelli

et al. 2020

Understanding the diffusion of warning messages is essential to adequately respond to emergency events and situations. This is especially true in urgent scenarios, that is situations where external events are happening at the same rate or faster than the diffusion process itself. In this paper, an information diffusion model (Bass model) is proposed to study the spread of warning messages during emergencies involving urgent diffusion dynamics, for example a CBRNe event. In the present study, the Bass model is applied to two hazardous materials transportation accidents reported in the literature: the Pittsburgh phosphorus oxychloride release and the precautionary evacuation occurred in Confluence due to toxic chemicals released after a train derailment. Warning data collected from the two accidents and reported in published literature studies were used in this work and fitted with the Bass model. The diffusion of emergency warning messages is modelled as a two‐component system, where the spread of information is characterized by (a) a “broadcast process” that disseminates the emergency warning vertically (in the sense that many people are alerted simultaneously) and (b) a horizontal “contagion process” whereby people first hear of the event and then sequentially tell others (social media, word‐of‐mouth and peer‐to‐peer communication). The Bass model provided an excellent fit of the warning diffusion times related to both accidents suggesting that the very first phase of the warning process is sustained by a “broadcast” information diffusion process. However, after less than 1 hr from the beginning of the warning process the efficacy of its diffusion is dominated by the “contagion” component, that is the effectiveness of a robust social network between individuals. In conclusion, the Bass model proved to be a handy tool to assess epidemics spreading of information from the people who adopted the information. Our results suggest that the general Bass model applied to diffusion of emergency warning has the potential to provide key information in the management of emergencies. This approach can be applied right away by professional communicators, advisors and decision‐makers in case of a CBRNe event.

“…(2020) report participants who viewed additional guidance accompanying tornado forecast maps resulted in improved message response and increased trust in forecast guidance. Research is needed to determine the most impactful graphical display to communicate the receiver is in an at‐risk location within a text‐based alert system (Bean et al., 2015), along with the public's willingness to use and trust new alert features (Bopp & Douvinet, 2020; van Dijl et al., 2019).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Self‐efficacy refers to perceived ability to enact a desired behaviour (van Dijl et al., 2019) and is a powerful predictor of context‐specific crisis efficacy and behavioural intention in crisis scenarios (Avery & Park, 2016). Behavioural intention refers to both the intent to share or seek information and to follow message instructions (i.e.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some of these factors are inherently included in a hazard map (Lindell, 2020), but others may be neglected if the map is not supplemented with additional text or verbal guidance. Recipients may delay protective action by seeking additional information to reduce uncertainty (van Dijl et al., 2019; Kim et al., 2019). Liu et al., (2017) found maps had a marginal effect on compliance and information sharing, but these relationships warrant further investigation.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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“You are here”: Assessing the inclusion of maps in a campus emergency alert system

Cain

Herovic

Wombacher

2021

Emergency alerts are typically sent through mobile devices and email and are a means by which to notify students of threats or hazards on campus. Alerts that include maps help illustrate the significance of a threat and improve understanding when designed correctly. This study of a college campus examines how maps can clarify who should take protective action by specifying the location of the threat in relation to the user, and whether maps affect risk perception, intended action, and trust in the message source. Results indicate a significant difference in perceptions of risk susceptibility between participants exposed to a long‐distance map, a short‐distance map, and no map, and participants exposed to the shooting condition reported significantly higher measures of negative emotions, risk susceptibility, risk severity, and behavioural intention. Findings indicate that while personalized maps improve risk susceptibility, they cannot work alone in affecting other message response factors and may be most useful when paired with highly specific warning messages. The results of this study are useful to practitioners developing or improving emergency alert systems.