Papers by Avi Kirschenbaum
Routledge eBooks, Feb 13, 2019
Scholarly approaches to understanding chaos theory as it applies to emergency management, especia... more Scholarly approaches to understanding chaos theory as it applies to emergency management, especially within the context of homeland security, would be extremely valuable to local practitioners. Alan Kirschenbaum postulates a chasm between the perceptions of disaster victims and the delivery of services by disaster management bureaucracies. Kirschenbaum argues that the chasm has been created by the bureaucracy itself and that bureaucracy focuses on its own survival and usurps the role of the community in disaster management.
Long Term Impact of Disasters on Community Cohesion
Social Science Research Network, 2022
International journal of mass emergencies and disasters, Nov 1, 2009
Disaster warnings have proved to be only partially effective in bringing about behaviors that enh... more Disaster warnings have proved to be only partially effective in bringing about behaviors that enhance survival. For disasters that are ongoing and associated with repeated warnings, determinants of compliance may change over time. To test this argument, a theoretical working model is developed and tested on the basis of data collected from a field survey of a national representative sample of Israeli households (814). Respondents were asked if they complied with the warning to enter a sealed room (i.e., shelter in place) at the initial and toward the end of a three month long ballistic missile attack on Israeli civilians during the First Gulf War. Compliance decreased with time. We then sought to generate a parsimonious model to explain the drop in compliance by focusing on a variety of factors that included "message" oriented and social process variables. Results of the logistic regression models demonstrated that compliance initially was determined by prior levels of preparedness whereas determinants of behavioral compliance three months later broadened to include gender, risk perceptions, and the source of knowledge for actions to the threat. These results strongly suggest that initial compliance with warnings depend on having available fundamental survival assets. With repeated warnings over time, social process variables significantly affected compliance decisions. Efforts to increase disaster survival should therefore consider the time continuum in terms of the impact of social process variables on complying with warnings.
Disaster Communities as Survival Mechanisms
Are Disaster Agencies Effective?
Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, Mar 6, 2018
Emergency contingency plans are conceived as an alternative rational-logical set of actions when ... more Emergency contingency plans are conceived as an alternative rational-logical set of actions when a formal emergency plan may be inadequate during an actual crisis. Most, like the official plan, are based on protocols inherent in the formal administrative structure of the organization with little attention paid to pervasive informal social networks found in the organization. We argue that a perspective focusing on informal social networks within organizations may provide a viable solution to supplement the formal plan. This approach integrates the power of informal social networks within and across organizations through the social context of transferring information and adaptive behaviours that have proven vital for organizational continuity. Special attention is paid to how a social network approach, as the basis for its integration into a viable contingency plan, is feasible for a variety of organizations. 1 | INTRODUCTION A cursory appraisal of the existence of contingency emergency plans as alternative actions (Plan "B") when the formal emergency plan is found to be inadequate in public agencies and private industry reveals that they are marginal or non-existent; or if documented, copies of existing plans to fill requirements from regulatory agencies (Davison, 2014; McCrie, 2012). The reasoning for this is complicated but can range from lack of awareness for a need of such a contingency plan to an assumption that the formal officially approved emergency plan will accomplish the need to mitigate and cope with any problem that might arise. A key to such plans is the need for control expressed in specific protocols that determine who, what, and where mitigating and recovery actions are to take place (Cook & Zurita, 2016). Yet, there is increasing evidence that formal emergency plans rarely work as designed (Kirschenbaum, 2004; Talen, 1996). In many cases, ad hoc and sometimes improvised actions take place based on the initiative of managers and employees (Hatton,
The Odds of Being a Victim
International journal of mass emergencies and disasters, Aug 1, 2005
Do risk perceptions of environmental hazards lead to preparing for them? Employing data from a na... more Do risk perceptions of environmental hazards lead to preparing for them? Employing data from a national urban household sample (814) in Israel, the link between risk perceptions and preparedness were examined for natural, industrial, technological, accidental and non/ conventional war disasters. A factor analysis generated six risk components conditional on the social familiarity with the potential victim as well as disaster-specific events and four preparedness components reflecting, provisions, skills, planning and protection. The 'riskpreparedness' association based on this matrix of components was inconsistent having few statistically significant correlations, some even negative. Regression coefficients used to predict preparedness actions due to risk perceptions were also only partially successful. Apparently, the impact of risk perceptions on preparedness is limited to specific environmental disasters and strongest for those preparedness behaviors that are more immediate, concrete and easy to achieve. These findings have direct application for disaster managers involved in risk communication and public education of disasters.
Does training improve security decisions? A case study of airports
Security Journal, 2017
A cardinal belief in airport security is that workers’ training has a direct impact on actual rul... more A cardinal belief in airport security is that workers’ training has a direct impact on actual rule compliance behavior and thereby assuring optimal security. Given the complex social and organizational nature of airports, however, it is not surprising that substantial proportions of security employees, including screeners, security guards and ground personnel bend, break or ignore rules and protocols, bringing into question the effectiveness of training. In a comprehensive study of airports across Europe, the impact of security training on security-related decisions was examined in detail. As airports are complex high-reliability organizations, their security levels are based on regulations that require both initial and refresher courses annually. We hypothesized that those more trained would comply more with the protocols and rules than those with less training. In addition, we contend and test the hypothesis that the robustness of the training process is modified as it becomes enmeshed in the reality of an airport’s organizational processes. Our results confirmed both general observations but also led us to discover that training itself is constrained in its ability to determine security decision behavior primarily because of an employee’s experience of actual threats. We then suggest a solution that incorporates a scenario simulation to bridge the gap between rule compliance and reality.
International journal of mass emergencies and disasters, Mar 1, 2004
This study proposes introducing the 'client-stakeholder'as a partner in measuring public sector d... more This study proposes introducing the 'client-stakeholder'as a partner in measuring public sector disaster management effectiveness. Combining multiple constituency and goal attainment theories, an analysis was made of Israel's Home Front Command. Combining responses of key managers in this disaster agency along with those of a representative national sample of Israel's urban population, effectiveness was measured by matching stated organizational goals against the perception of their provision by client-stakeholders. Goal perceptions were found to substantially differ from and focus on only a small number of officially stated goals. The results suggest that a disaster organization's stated goals, upon which most measures of organizational effectiveness are based, are not necessarily those perceived or even used by its client-stakeholders to gauge effectiveness. In addition, factors contributing to these perceptions are not necessarily related to the organization or the services it provides. This stands in sharp contrast to traditional measures of organizational effectiveness based on internal performance measures and highlights the need to reevaluate the role of the client-stakeholder in measuring disaster management organizational effectiveness.
Bystanders' Behavior during Emergencies
World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, Mar 12, 2020
International journal of mass emergencies and disasters, 1992
The Suburban Myth
American Sociological Review, Aug 1, 1970
Mass Terrorism and the Distribution of Gas Masks in Israel: A Longitudinal Cohort Analysis
International Journal of Mass Emergencies & Disasters
This paper describes and analyzes the distribution of gas masks in Israel. It is based on a longi... more This paper describes and analyzes the distribution of gas masks in Israel. It is based on a longitudinal cohort analysis to assess the effectiveness of the program and those factors explaining skill level in mask use. A matched cohort sample ten years after the original distribution in 1991 are compared along with pre and post Gulf War mask recipients. The results suggest that the original distribution program to have been extremely effective in maintaining skill level in use, providing client satisfaction and increasing protective confidence. A matched cohort 10 years later showed a continuation of these high levels of preparedness and of skills required to effectively use gas masks. Contrasting pre-post Gulf War mask recipients revealed those who experienced the war had significantly higher mask-use skill levels. Marital status, and risk perceptions of an imminent war accounted for these differences.
Residential Ambiguity and Relocation Decisions: Population and Areas at Risk
International Journal of Mass Emergencies & Disasters
Residential relocation is one means of coping with living in a perceived high risk area. An analy... more Residential relocation is one means of coping with living in a perceived high risk area. An analysis of a sample of household members who live in such an area showed the extent to which fear of a recurring emergency event affects attitudes toward seeking an alternative safer area to reside. Intent to relocate is linked to specific sub-groups of families on the basis of how they comprehend the risks of remaining (educational level) and extent of possible economic damage (level of assets). A series of independent variables reflecting affective-emotive behavior during the disaster. Post-crisis trauma related attitudes and pre/post disaster neighborhood bonds were likewise linked with an intention to move to a safer neighborhood. A regression model focused the analysis on the degree to which concern of psychological damage to children played a decisive role in determining a relocation decision.
Privatizing Disaster Management
Chaos Organization and Disaster Management, 2019
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Papers by Avi Kirschenbaum