Household Disaster Preparedness and Personal Network Features

Results from the First Wave Kochi City Panel Survey

Abstract

In this exploratory research, the author examined the influences of personal network features and the channels of acquiring disaster prevention knowledge over the household disaster preparedness. Data used in the analysis were derived from the survey of 376 participants in the Kochi city. Multiple regression analysis was executed with the personal network index and the means for learning disaster prevention knowledge as explanatory variables, with the five factors extracted by factor analysis as the objective variables. The five objective variables are the disaster stockpiling factor (I), the evacuation knowledge factor (II), the disaster prevention training factor (III), the earthquake countermeasure factor (IV), and the fire-fighting preparation factor (V). As the results, the personal network features of intimate alters and disaster-consulting antlers are statistically associated with four factors. Learning disaster prevention knowledge with lectures and workshops, the publicity papers, and books and magazines are also positively associated with the disaster preparedness.