Tornado Warning Response and Perceptions among Undergraduates in Nebraska

Abstract

Few studies show how university students perceive and respond to tornado warnings. Lacking in the literature are investigations of what influences perceptions of tornado risk among this population and how these perceptions may influence actions. Through an online survey of 640 undergraduates enrolled at a large university in Nebraska, significant relationships were found between student demographics, perceptions, and response actions. Tornado mythology relevant to the local city influenced perceptions so that students felt the city was less at risk than surrounding rural land. Confirming risk before sheltering remained popular, with some students choosing to never seek shelter during a warning. International students were more likely to initially seek shelter during a warning but had difficulty interpreting warning polygons or accurately choosing the best safety actions. Tornado-related education resulted in international students being more likely to have safety plans and shelter in more appropriate locations. Most domestic students correctly identified safe areas in which to shelter, but fewer knew the precise meaning of a tornado warning polygon. Parents/guardians and the school were the most popular tornado knowledge sources for domestic students, while friends and self-education were popular with international students. Respondents seemed willing to learn more about tornadoes and perceived a lack of tornado-related resources available on campus. This implies that more thorough tornado education and information dissemination on university campuses is warranted. Faster personalization of risk, dispelling local myths, and educating those new to tornado-prone locations should be emphasized.

Severe Weather Forecasts and Public Perceptions: An Analysis of the 2011 Super Outbreak in Tuscaloosa, Alabama

“…The residents sought to verify the warnings they were exposed to with some other source of information, like changing the channel or checking the internet and social media, or through their social networks. These forms of confirmations are not questionable, however, similar to the findings in other research (e.g., Balluz et al 2000;Jauernic and Van Den Broeke 2017), many of the college group study participants reported relying on social (e.g., mimicking the behavior of others) and environmental cues (e.g., waiting to see physical evidence of the approaching storm). Therefore, based on focus group findings, the most challenging step in the process to taking protective action appears to be confirming the threat.…”

“…Regardless of the level of understanding of public advisories, research suggests that people often seek to substantiate the information received through social (e.g., watching the behaviors of others) and environmental (e.g., listening for sounds and looking for physical signs of an approaching tornado) cues (Lindell and Perry 2012;Balluz et al 2000;Comstock and Mallonee 2005;Jauernic and Van Den Broeke 2017). Previous experience with tornadoes also appears to significantly increase threat appraisals and personal responsibility (Mulilis et al 2003), as well as preparedness (Comstock and Mallonee 2005;Mulilis et al 2003).…”

Impact of cry wolf effects on social preparedness and the efficiency of flood early warning systems

“…We assumed that social collective trust in FEWS is affected by the recent accuracy of FEWS. Previous studies pointed out that the recent forecast accuracy and false alarm ratio affected the performance of preparedness actions (Simmons and Sutter, 2009;Trainor et al, 2015;Ripberger et al, 2015;Jauernic and van den Broeke, 2017). In the controlled experiment of LeClerc and Joslyn (2015), mediumrange trust ratings are increased by decreased false alarm levels.…”

Cry Wolf Effect? Evaluating the Impact of False Alarms on Public Responses to Tornado Alerts in the Southeastern United States

“…For example, Trainor et al (2015) found that people in areas with higher actual county tornado false alarm ratios are less likely to take protective actions like sheltering in place. Jauernic and van den Broeke (2017) found that an increase in perceived false alarm ratio is associated with a lower likelihood of seeking shelter. Paul et al (2015) found that residents in an area with frequent false alarms did not respond to warnings in a timely manner.…”