Doctoral Dissertation Research: Social Adaptations and Recovery After Natural Disasters

This doctoral dissertation research studies the differential impacts and experiences of repeated natural disasters on different social groups to understand the social variations in adaptation and recovery. The investigators specifically test for the differential impacts of social and economic support, overall health status, and emergency resource management on post disaster outcomes. In addition to providing scientific training for a graduate student in anthropology, broader impacts of the project will inform public disaster management strategies and contribute to the knowledge base that addresses the variations across vulnerable populations facing repeated natural disasters. In order to understand the adaptations of different social groups to natural disasters, the investigators utilize qualitative research methods that include semi-structured interviews and behavioral observations in regions with repeated natural disasters. The research expands the anthropological science of adaptations to natural disaster management and makes clear contributions to medical and environmental anthropology, public health, and disability studies. It provides science-based insights that inform the development of sustainable and robust disaster response and recovery strategies. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.