Natural environment disaster survival experiences: Narrative research from two communities

We develop a model of sequential responses of disaster survivors as they experience natural disaster stages. The disaster response model is based on the confluence of psychological processes with temporal environmental states that are markers of disaster periods. The study analyzes journalistic narratives taken from informants experiencing natural disasters in two culturally diverse communities. Recorded short-term vivid memory traces of survivors are assumed to accurately project their interpretations of events and experiences, reflected in their narratives. Whilst survivors share many similarities in their profiles of natural disaster response, some cultural differences in response are observed between communities, such as religiosity. Copyright © 2007 Massey University.