The single-person drill: An action research approach for inducing participants’ subjective, individual initiated disaster risk mitigation

Abstract

This study proposed an action research plan to help people attain their own subjective, individually initiated disaster risk mitigation strategies, while questioning the research stance of most disaster experts. These experts traditionally rely on scientific methods, expecting subjects to follow instructions provided in a generic manner. Such emphasis on routine instructions may deter the participant from actively engaging in their own risk mitigation. To cope with this problem, action research—a human scientific research approach that emphasizes collaboration between researchers and their subjects—has been implemented. The effectiveness of action research can be demonstrated through the “single-person drill.” During a mock emergency (tsunami simulation) drill, each participant’s movements are recorded, and then overlapped on GIS maps to show whether the participant would have escaped from the predicted movement of a tsunami. This study traced the subjective, individually initiated risk mitigation of three participants, across three stages of the drill, including planning, dissemination, and reflection. We compared the action research approach to traditional scientific approaches, and discovered that action research generates greater participant interest, thus facilitating individual involvement in disaster risk mitigation.