Shifting Perceptions of Resilience in the Wake of the Indian Ocean Tsunami

During rehabilitation efforts following a coastal disaster individual and community assessments of well-being change rapidly, along with changing livelihoods, natural resource use and related perceptions. Certain social and economic factors have been found to predispose people to experiencing more severe impacts of natural disasters. Disadvantaged sectors of the population are more likely to be negatively affected by disasters because they are least likely to withstand damage from a hazard to resist its impacts and/or maintain reserves to fall back on in the aftermath of the disaster. These disadvantaged sectors have been related to factors such as age, education, source(s) of income, standard of living and religion or ethnicity. Previous studies in coastal communities have also noted the importance of considering factors in addition to demographics, such as perceptions and social capital, to more fully describe individual and community resilience during and following disaster recovery efforts. Perceptions and attitudes can determine actual responses to changes in environmental or governance contexts and that greater perceived well-being is associated with higher resilience. Greater social capital can also enhance resilience in coastal communities by providing support to individuals and as a whole, through for example, increased access to assets for mobilization and resources for adapting to impacts brought about by a disaster or stress upon the social or natural system upon which a coastal community relies.

This presentation describes several indicators associated with resilience in a fishing community in Thailand during a livelihood rehabilitation effort aimed at assisting recovery from damage caused by the Indian Ocean tsunami. Data from participant observation, semi-structured interviews and household surveys conducted at the beginning and conclusion of the livelihood rehabilitation effort are analyzed to explore indicators associated with individual and community resilience. These residents share many demographic traits and therefore, other factors found to be associated with perceived well-being and community resilience can be more accurately analyzed. Results of this research suggest that within relatively homogenous communities, differences in social capital, participation in recovery projects, and attitudes associated with disaster resilience are valuable indicators to assess when considering resilience in coastal communities with changing governance and environmental contexts.