The natural domain and its social representation in the community resilience concept

Abstract

Mountain communities in Alpine areas are prone to natural hazard events and sensitive to climate change. In these areas, where communities are complex human-environmental entanglements, strong community resilience is essential. Community resilience is shaped by a set of interacting domains that provide insights into a community's resilience level and highlights the proactive human agency the domains contain. The relevance of human agency for the natural, economic, social, cultural, and political domains has not yet been revealed. This study explores the interdependencies of the community resilience domains, particularly the natural domain, through the lens of social representation theory. Qualitative data from two remote mountain villages in the Upper Ötztal Valley in Tyrol, Austria, were analyzed. The research reveals that the natural domain is shaped through its social representation. Understanding this social representation contributes to a broader understanding of community resilience and can empower communities to harness the capacities that enhance it.