Arjen Schmidt, Jeroen Wolbers, Kees Boersma, Julie Ferguson, & Peter Groenwegen. (2016). Are you Ready2Help? Dilemmas in organizing citizen response to disaster. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: Over the last decade, the disaster response landscape is increasingly complemented by voluntary citizen initiatives on digital platforms. These developments have opened up opportunities for response agencies and NGOs to organize local community involvement. In this paper we focus on the question how citizen involvement can be proactively organized toward disaster relief and what kind of dilemmas may arise in this process. We studied Ready2Help, an online platform developed by the Dutch Red Cross. Bringing together 36.000 volunteers, the platform plays a significant role in addressing the current refugee crisis. In our analysis we demonstrate the platform?s potential, but also note a tension between control and cooperation. Our results indicate that, in contrast to their initial objective, during the crisis the Red Cross falls back on principles of control to organize citizen response efforts. We end by discussing our future research agenda aimed at bridging formal and emergent citizen responses.
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Bonny Roos, Kim van Buul-Besseling, Jan-Willem Streefkerk, & Martijn Neef. (2015). Recover Faster from Disaster: Success Factors for a Crowdsourcing Platform. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: In this paper, we present a model that identifies seven success factors for the development of crowdsourcing platforms for disaster recovery. This model integrates two existing theories. The first theory focuses on success factors of crowdsourcing initiatives in general. The second theory states how disaster relief operations can improve when they take the psychological components of resilience into account. By merging the core principles of these two theories and adding additional knowledge gained from literature study, we constructed an integrated success factor model for use in the development of crowdsourcing applications for disaster recovery. An initial validation of the success factor model was conducted within a case study on a crowdsourcing platform for disaster recovery which is currently being developed. Conclusions are drawn with regards to the applicability of the model to guide development of crowdsourcing platforms for disaster recovery.
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Briony Gray, Mark Weal, & David Martin. (2018). Building Resilience in Small Island Developing States: Social Media during the 2017 Atlantic Hurricane Season. In Kristin Stock, & Deborah Bunker (Eds.), Proceedings of ISCRAM Asia Pacific 2018: Innovating for Resilience – 1st International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management Asia Pacific. (pp. 469–479). Albany, Auckland, New Zealand: Massey Univeristy.
Abstract: There are growing concerns that future Atlantic hurricane seasons will be severe and unpredictable due to underlying factors such as climate change. The 2017 season may offer a range of lessons, especially to small island developing states (SIDS), who are looking to build community resilience and heighten community engagement to cope with disaster. While many SIDS utilise a range of media and technology for these purposes, there has been a recent uptake in the use of social media, which may have further potential to support their goals. This paper scopes the use and users of social media in the case of Antigua and Barbuda during the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season. Through a series of qualitative interviews it explains the role that social media currently has, and concludes with suggestions for its improvement in future seasons that are contextualized over the disaster lifecycle phases.
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Chris Hagar. (2015). Public Library Partnerships with Local Agencies to Meet Community Disaster Preparedness and Response Needs. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: This paper reports on the initial findings of the first phase of a study funded by San Jose State University, USA to provideinsightregardinghowpubliclibrariescanbe moreinvolvedincommunity-wide disasterplanning,strengtheningtheirroleascoremembersof theircommunities?disasterpreparedness and responseinfrastructure. The first phase of the study involves a nationwide survey of public library directors and library staff who are involved in coordinating disaster planning for their institutions. A survey was carried out during December 2014 and January 2015 to explorewhatpubliclibrariescanbringtocommunity-wideplanningefforts and thetypesofpartnershipsthatarepossible. The findingswillprovidelibraryleaderswithvaluableinsighton how to proactivelyengageindialogueandplanningwiththeirlocalemergencymanagement community. The second phase emerging from the research will involve follow-up in-depth explorations of the exemplary disaster planning models.
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Christine Adler, Werner Sauter, Jona Meyer, Maria Hagl, & Margit Raich. (2015). First Steps in the Development of an Internet-based Learning Platform for Strategic Crisis Managers. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: Based on interviews with European crisis managers and other stakeholders, we identified specific learning requirements regarding psycho-social support in disaster management. This paper describes the process of developing a learning environment specifically for disaster managers with strategic responsibilities. Focusing on competence development, the underlying concept emphasizes peer-like exchanges and self-directed learning rather than passive, externally organized training methods. For that purpose a web-based learning platform is being developed in combination with competence development modules tailored to the needs of crisis managers. The envisioned learning platform utilizes blended learning and social learning concepts and technologies to facilitate knowledge building, adapted and customized to the needs of the crisis managers. End-user requirements will be individually assessed in order to generate up-to-date content while considering the wider EU-context.
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Daniel Auferbauer, Christoph Ruggenthaler, Gerald Czech, & Ivan Gojmerac. (2019). Taxonomy of Community Interaction in Crises and Disasters. In Z. Franco, J. J. González, & J. H. Canós (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response And Management. Valencia, Spain: Iscram.
Abstract: Taxonomies are integral to systems engineering, as they structure our knowledge of a field and so provide the
foundation for technological development. We contribute such taxonomies for the field of Community
Interaction and Engagement in Crisis and Disaster Management, which represents the interface between
members of the public who commit to relief efforts and established organisations that have a pre-defined role in
crisis management. These actors are unified in their purpose to help those in need, but also set apart by their
organisational structures and modes of operation. We classify the actors of Community Interaction and
Engagement, as well as the interactions between them. Our contribution outlines areas where the application of
Information and Communication Technology can offer benefits to Community Interaction and Engagement.
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Daniel Auferbauer, Roman Ganhör, & Hilda Tellioglu. (2015). Moving Towards Crowd Tasking for Disaster Mitigation. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: Advancements in information and communication technology (ICT) offer new possibilities when dealing with crisis situations. In this paper we present the design for a crowd tasking tool (CTT) that is currently under development. We describe how the tool can assist disaster relief coordinators during a crisis by selectively distributing tasks to a crowd of volunteers. We also compare the CTT with an already existing ICT based solution for supporting volunteerism during crisis. The differences between these two tools are addressed and the implications for volunteerism are discussed. The paper concludes with an outlook on future work emphasizing a form of volunteer involvement that offers potential for gathering information that is more relevant and easier to digest for decision-making than information provided solely by self-organised volunteers through social media.
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Daniel Auferbauer, Roman Ganhör, Hilda Tellioglu, & Jasmin Pielorz. (2016). Crowdtasking: Field Study on a Crowdsourcing Alternative. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: In this paper we elaborate on the concept of crowdtasking as a form of crowdsourcing. The paper describes the setup and boundaries of a first controlled live field test of a prototypical implementation of a possible crowdtasking workflow. The implemented workflow allows crisis managers rapid intelligence gathering due to direct and tailored task distribution. Practitioners of Crisis and Disaster Management and volunteer managers who were present during the field test made favourable comments on the approach and its implementation. The analysis of the records and the conducted interviews give new insights and ideas for further development.
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David Paulus, Kenny Meesters, Gerdien de Vries, & Bartel Van de Walle. (2019). The reciprocity of data integration in disaster risk analysis. In Z. Franco, J. J. González, & J. H. Canós (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response And Management. Valencia, Spain: Iscram.
Abstract: Humanitarian organizations are increasingly challenged by the amount of data available to drive their decisions. Useful data can come from many sources, exists in different formats, and merging it into a basis for analysis and planning often exceeds organizations? capacities and resources. At the same time, affected communities? participation in decision making processes is often hindered by a lack of information and data literacy capacities within the communities. We describe a participatory disaster risk analysis project in the central Philippines where the community and a humanitarian NGO worked towards a joint understanding of disaster risks and coping capacities through data integration and IT-supported analysis. We present findings from workshops, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews, showing the reciprocal effects of the collaborative work. While the community valued the systematically gathered and structured evidence that supported their own risk perceptions and advocacy efforts, the humanitarian NGO revisited established work practices for data collection for analysis and planning.
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Denis Havlik, Jasmin Pielorz, & Adam Widera. (2016). Interaction with citizens experiments: from context-aware alerting to crowdtasking. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: The EU FP7 project DRIVER is conducting a number of experiments to assess the feasibility of addressing known deficiencies in crisis management. In this paper, we introduce experiments that investigate two-way communication solutions between crisis managers and citizens or unaffiliated volunteers. In the so-called ?Interaction with Citizens? experiments we are testing the usability and acceptance of the various methods and tools that facilitate crisis communication at several levels. This includes: informing and alerting of citizens; micro-tasking of volunteers; gathering of situational information about the crisis incident from volunteers; and usage of this information to improve situation awareness. At the time of writing this paper, our ?Interaction with Citizens? experiments are still under way. Therefore, this paper reports the lessons learned in the first two experiments along with the experimental setup and expectations for the final experiment.
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Elina Ramsell, Tobias Andersson Granberg, & Sofie Pilemalm. (2019). Identifying functions for smartphone based applications in volunteer emergency response. In Z. Franco, J. J. González, & J. H. Canós (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response And Management. Valencia, Spain: Iscram.
Abstract: Emergency response organisations struggle with resource constraints and thereby faces challenges in providing
high-quality public services. Utilising voluntary first responders is one way to address these challenges. There
are different types of volunteers who can help at an emergency site, e.g. citizen volunteers or voluntary
professionals from other occupations. To successfully engage with and utilise these resources, adequate
information and communication technology (ICT) is necessary. In this meta-study, combining and further
exploring two previous studies, the aim is to identify, analyse and evaluate suitable functions for smartphone
applications that can be used to dispatch and support volunteers. The results show that the functions can be
divided into essential ones that are necessary for the response to work at all, and others that might contribute to a
more effective response. The study also shows that the same functions can be used for different volunteer
groups.
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Tristan Endsley, Yu Wu, & James Reep. (2014). The source of the story: Evaluating the credibility of crisis information sources. In and P.C. Shih. L. Plotnick M. S. P. S.R. Hiltz (Ed.), ISCRAM 2014 Conference Proceedings – 11th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 160–164). University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University.
Abstract: In a highly connected world, information coming from different media sources and social relationships are more quickly disseminated than ever before. Natural disasters such as Typhoon Haiyan capture attention globally. Investigations of how people respond to the credibility of different sources have implications for policy making and information systems design. In this paper, we studied how different factors (strength of social ties and sources of crisis information) affect perception of credibility of crisis information about natural disasters. Our analysis and findings indicate that for crisis information about natural disasters, people tend to trust traditional media channels, such as printed news, and televised news. The type of social tie also influences the perceived credibility of the crisis information.
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Flávio Horita, João Porto de Albuquerque, Victor Marchezini, & Eduardo M. Mendiondo,. (2016). A qualitative analysis of the early warning decision-making process in disaster management. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: Early warning systems are an important means of improving the efficiency of disaster response and preparedness. However, in its analysis of the technological aspects of the infrastructure, the literature has failed to carry out an investigation of early warning process. This paper has sought to take a step toward understanding this issue by carrying out a qualitative analysis of the early warning process in disaster management. This has involved participatory observations and conducting interviews with practitioners from the National Center for Monitoring and Early Warning of Natural Disasters (CEMADEN). The results have shown that this research area is a promising way of increasing efficiency and reducing the response time to warnings. This might be achieved by conducting a process analysis, which could provide evidence and information about bottlenecks or investigate the misuse of information systems or tasks by the players involved.
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Hongmin Li, Xukun Li, Doina Caragea, & Cornelia Caragea. (2018). Comparison of Word Embeddings and Sentence Encodings for Generalized Representations in Crisis Tweet Classifications. In Kristin Stock, & Deborah Bunker (Eds.), Proceedings of ISCRAM Asia Pacific 2018: Innovating for Resilience – 1st International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management Asia Pacific. (pp. 480–493). Albany, Auckland, New Zealand: Massey Univeristy.
Abstract: Many machine learning and natural language processing techniques, including supervised and domain adaptation algorithms, have been proposed and studied in the context of filtering crisis tweets. However, applying these approaches in real-time is still challenging because of time-critical requirements of emergency response operations and also diversities and unique characteristics of emergency events. In this paper, we explore the idea of building “generalized” classifiers for filtering crisis tweets that can be pre-trained, and are thus ready to use in real-time, while generalizing well on future disasters/crises data. We propose to achieve this using simple feature based adaptation with tweet representations based on word embeddings and also sentence-level embeddings, representations which do not rely on unlabeled data to achieve domain adaptations and can be easily implemented. Given that there are different types of word/sentence embeddings that are widely used, we propose to compare them to get a general idea about which type works better with crisis tweets classification tasks. Our experimental results show that GloVe embeddings in general work better with the datasets used in our evaluation, and that the supervised algorithms used in our experiments benefit from GloVe embeddings trained specifically on crisis data. Furthermore, our experimental results show that following GloVe, the sentence embeddings have great potential in crisis tweet tasks.
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Hossein Baharmand, Kees Boersma, Kenny Meesters, Femke Mulder, & Jeroen Wolbers. (2016). A multidisciplinary perspective on supporting community disaster resilience in Nepal. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: Fostering community resilience in the aftermath of a disaster constitutes a significant challenge and requires an adequate understanding of the community?s specific capabilities and vulnerabilities. We carried out a field study in Nepal as a multi-disciplinary research team that explored how the humanitarian response enabled community resilience after the devastating earthquakes. We explored three elements of resilience: persistence, adaptability and transformability by zooming in and out between the local community and humanitarian organizations operating at the national level. Our combined insights from three disciplines, social sciences, information management and logistics, show that humanitarian organizations operating in Nepal still primarily aimed to (re)build community resilience ?from above? instead of enabling communities to strengthen their own resilience in a bottom up way. In this paper we contend that fostering an inclusive and networked response has the potential to strengthen the adaptive capacity of humanitarian organizations and community groups and boost local resilience.
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Jarrod R. Olson, Jonathan L. Barr, Russ Burtner, Curtis L. West, & Joseph Kielman. (2015). Policy and Technology Readiness: Engaging the User and Developer Community to Develop a Research Roadmap. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: A key challenge for research roadmapping in the crisis response and management domain is articulation of a shared vision that describes what the future can and should include. Visioning allows for far-reaching stakeholder engagement that can properly align research with stakeholders? needs. Engagement includes feedback from researchers, policy makers, general public, and end-users on technical and non-technical factors. This work articulates a process and framework for the construction and maintenance of a stakeholder-centric research vision and roadmap in the emergency management domain. This novel roadmapping process integrates three pieces: analysis of the research and technology landscape, visioning, and stakeholder engagement. Our structured engagement process elicits research foci for the roadmap based on relevance to stakeholder mission, identifies collaborators, and builds consensus around the roadmap priorities. We find that the vision process and vision storyboard helps SMEs conceptualize and discuss a technology?s strengths, weaknesses, and alignment with needs.
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Jennifer Lisa Chan, Gabriel Nam, Allison G. Marshall, & Hemant Purohit. (2019). Trends in Humanitarian Health Information during 2010 Haiti Earthquake: Motivation for Curating Domain Knowledge Base. In Z. Franco, J. J. González, & J. H. Canós (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response And Management. Valencia, Spain: Iscram.
Abstract: Health response plays a major role during disasters and information management plays a crucial role in situational awareness to adapt to evolving needs. Health organizations exchange information often through narrative-based documents called situation reports. Although situation reports are widely shared, they are an increasingly challenging information source from which to infer knowledge for situational awareness. This paper analyzed health information from traditional health reports using mixed methods during the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti Earthquake and provides insights into the patterns of what?s being said, how it?s being said, and trends over time. Opportunities lie ahead to analyze narrative documents at scale by combining human knowledge from qualitative coding with machine intelligence. In addition, developing unifying health domain ontologies representing diverse humanitarian health concepts will advance computational techniques to improve
the efficiency and accuracy of retrieving knowledge for improved situational awareness and potential decision
making during humanitarian health response.
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Jess Kropczynski, Rob Grace, Julien Coche, Shane Halse, Eric Obeysekare, Aurélie Montarnal, et al. (2018). Identifying Actionable Information on Social Media for Emergency Dispatch. In Kristin Stock, & Deborah Bunker (Eds.), Proceedings of ISCRAM Asia Pacific 2018: Innovating for Resilience – 1st International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management Asia Pacific. (pp. 428–438). Albany, Auckland, New Zealand: Massey Univeristy.
Abstract: Crisis informatics researchers have taken great interest in methods to identify information relevant to crisis events posted by digital bystanders on social media. This work codifies the information needs of emergency dispatchers and first responders as a method to identify actionable information on social media. Through a design workshop with public safety professionals at a Public-Safety Answering Point (PSAP) in the United States, we develop a set of information requirements that must be satisfied to dispatch first responders and meet their immediate situational awareness needs. We then present a manual coding scheme to identify information satisfying these requirements in social media posts and apply this scheme to fictitious tweets professionals propose as actionable information to better assess ways that this information may be communicated. Finally, we propose automated methods from previous literature in the field that can be used to implement these methods in the future.
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Joanne I. White, & Leysia Palen. (2015). Participatory Mapping for Disaster Preparedness: The Development & Standardization of Animal Evacuation Maps. In L. Palen, M. Buscher, T. Comes, & A. Hughes (Eds.), ISCRAM 2015 Conference Proceedings ? 12th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Kristiansand, Norway: University of Agder (UiA).
Abstract: People who own animals are faced with complex decision making in evacuations. In the US, the Emergency Operations Center is often inundated with calls from animal owners who are aware they are under pre- or mandatory evacuation, but are unsure of what to do about evacuating their animals. Often animal evacuation is a highly improvised activity for owners and responders, though there is a now a general push toward streamlining procedures because of the high impact the matter of animals has on society?s welfare during times of emergency. This paper reports on the use of participatory design methods in a mapping project to support the range of people involved in animal evacuation during mass displacement events. The work provides insight into both procedures and standards for creating evacuation maps that communicate clearly with the public and across the range of emergency responders.
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Kenny Meesters, Vittorio Nespeca, & Tina Comes. (2019). Designing Disaster Information Management Systems 2.0: Connecting communities and responders. In Z. Franco, J. J. González, & J. H. Canós (Eds.), Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response And Management. Valencia, Spain: Iscram.
Abstract: Information and supporting information systems is a key element in an effective emergency response. From
creating situational awareness to informed decision making, information enables responders to optimize their
decisions and operations. Today, with the increased availability of information technology around the globe, a
new active player in the field of information management is emerging as communities are becoming increasingly
active in the field of information gathering, analyzing and sharing.
However, communities may have specific requirements and approaches to using information systems in crisis
situations. Moreover, connecting information systems between communities and responder pose specific
challenges due to the different information needs, capacities and incentives to use them. In this paper we build on
the DERMIS premises and explore through a case study if and how these principles apply to inclusive information
systems. We present the initial findings of this work of designing information systems involving both communities
and formal responders.
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Keri K. Stephens, Jing Li, Brett W. Robertson, William R. Smith, & Dhiraj Murthy. (2018). Citizens Communicating Health Information: Urging Others in their Community to Seek Help During a Flood. In Kees Boersma, & Brian Tomaszeski (Eds.), ISCRAM 2018 Conference Proceedings – 15th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 893–902). Rochester, NY (USA): Rochester Institute of Technology.
Abstract: When wide-scale flooding occurs in a community not accustomed to floods, health concerns emerge. While official organizations tasked with communicating emerging health information exist, the proliferation of social media makes it possible for average citizens to participate in this conversation. This study used a combination of semi-structured interviews and photo elicitation techniques to explore how citizens used private social media sites to share health information. We found two main categories of health concerns: existing medical conditions and water-created. We further identified six themes that describe the common approaches average citizens used to share health information: Narrating a personal experience, presenting it as a Public Service Announcement, downplaying the contribution, bringing a credible source into the conversation, including external links and sources, and using humor. Together, these findings suggest that citizens need health information during a flood disaster, and when they do not have it available from official sources, they use their private social media to tap into a shared community identity and carefully help one another.
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Craig E. Kuziemsky, Ahsan Hadi, Tracey L. O'Sullivan, Daniel E. Lane, & Wayne Corneil. (2014). An ontology for contextual information system design. In and P.C. Shih. L. Plotnick M. S. P. S.R. Hiltz (Ed.), ISCRAM 2014 Conference Proceedings – 11th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 165–169). University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University.
Abstract: Collaborative teamwork is becoming more common in several domains including healthcare and disaster management. While collaborative teamwork can benefit from information system (IS) support, designing IS models to support collaboration is a significant challenge owing to the variations in tasks and people that must be supported, and the different contexts within which collaboration takes place. Collaborative teamwork can vary greatly because of context, which is the integration of diverse, dynamic, and heterogeneous needs for groups to achieve a specific goal. However in the literature there has been limited emphasis on how contextual underpinnings can be incorporated into IS design. This paper uses a case study of the design of a user-driven prototype disaster management IS. We used the think aloud method to capture participant thoughts while interacting with the IS prototype. The think aloud data was analyzed and used to develop an ontology of contextual considerations to support IS design.
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Vitaveska Lanfranchi, Stuart N. Wrigley, Neil Ireson, Uta Wehn, & Fabio Ciravegna. (2014). Citizens' observatories for situation awareness in flooding. In and P.C. Shih. L. Plotnick M. S. P. S.R. Hiltz (Ed.), ISCRAM 2014 Conference Proceedings – 11th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management (pp. 145–154). University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University.
Abstract: Citizens' observatories are emerging as a means to establish interaction and co-participation between citizens and authorities during both emergencies and the day-to-day management of fundamental resources. In this paper we present a case study in which a model of citizens' observatories is being been translated into practice in the WeSenseIt project. The WeSenseIt citizens' observatory provides a unique way of engaging the public in the decision-making processes associated with water and flood management through a set of new digital technologies. The WeSenseIt citizens' observatory model is being implemented in three case studies based in the UK, the Netherlands and Italy. We describe the findings and our experiences following preliminary evaluations of the technologies and the model of co-participation and describe our future research plans.
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Linda Plotnick, Starr Roxanne Hiltz, Sukeshini Grandhi, & Julie Dugdale. (2018). Real or Fake? User Behavior and Attitudes Related to Determining the Veracity of Social Media Posts. In Kristin Stock, & Deborah Bunker (Eds.), Proceedings of ISCRAM Asia Pacific 2018: Innovating for Resilience – 1st International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management Asia Pacific. (pp. 439–449). Albany, Auckland, New Zealand: Massey Univeristy.
Abstract: Citizens and Emergency Managers need to be able to distinguish “fake” (untrue) news posts from real news posts on social media during disasters. This paper is based on an online survey conducted in 2018 that produced 341 responses from invitations distributed via email and through Facebook. It explores to what extent and how citizens generally assess whether postings are “true” or “fake,” and describes indicators of the trustworthiness of content that users would like. The mean response on a semantic differential scale measuring how frequently users attempt to verify the news trustworthiness (a scale from 1-never to 5-always) was 3.37. The most frequent message characteristics citizens' use are grammar and the trustworthiness of the sender. Most respondents would find an indicator of trustworthiness helpful, with the most popular choice being a colored graphic. Limitations and implications for assessments of trustworthiness during disasters are discussed.
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Liz Bacon, Lachlan MacKinnon, Avgoustinos Filippoupolitis, & David Kananda. (2016). Design of an Immersive Online Crisis Preparation Learning Environment. In A. Tapia, P. Antunes, V.A. Bañuls, K. Moore, & J. Porto (Eds.), ISCRAM 2016 Conference Proceedings ? 13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management. Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.
Abstract: This paper describes the design and development of an online immersive learning environment focused on supporting the general public in awareness of, and preparation for, crisis situations. The system developed uses the PANDORA+ training environment, and integrates prior research work carried out on eLearning and Crisis Management. Specifically, it pulls together the outputs of three European funded research projects, described in the paper, which provided the authors with a rich multimedia, immersive training environment for crisis managers, experience in the management and support of a large, distributed learning exercise through a MOOC, and extensive survey information on general population awareness of crisis responses and attitudes to crisis preparation. Based on these outputs, the authors are using the PANDORA+ training environment both as a field event support tool and as a MOOC platform, to support large-scale general public crisis preparation training.
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