Individual disaster communication in the Latinx community after Hurricane Harvey: The role of disaster exposure, perceived discrimination stress, and social trust

Abstract

This study examined how socio-cultural factors explain the relationship between hurricane exposure and frequency of individual disaster communication among Latinx individuals in Texas communities impacted by Hurricane Harvey. Participants included 397 Latinx residents in nine Texas counties that were most impacted by Hurricane Harvey. Through structural equation modeling, results indicated that perceived discrimination stress mediates the relationship between Hurricane Harvey exposure and individual disaster communication, whereas social distrust plays a disruptive role. Overall, the results (a) identify the individual and inter-related influence of stress and trust factors on the seeking and sharing of information within Latinx disaster communication ecologies, and (b) emphasize the importance of trust-building and storytelling strategies to engage the Latinx community following disasters.