IJERPH, Vol. 18, Pages 4141: The Factors Affecting Volunteers ’ Willingness to Participate in Disaster Preparedness

IJERPH, Vol. 18, Pages 4141: The Factors Affecting Volunteers’ Willingness to Participate in Disaster Preparedness International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health doi: 10.3390/ijerph18084141 Authors: Yingnan Ma Wei Zhu Huan Zhang Pengxia Zhao Yafei Wang Qiujie Zhang Disaster preparedness is crucial for providing an effective response to, and reducing the possible impacts of, disasters. Although volunteers’ participation plays an important role in disaster preparedness, their actual participation in disaster preparedness activities is still low. To find ways to encourage more volunteers to participate, this study analyzed the social background and organizational and attitudinal factors affecting the volunteers’ willingness to participate. Questionnaires were distributed to 990 registered disaster volunteers across Beijing and the data were analyzed using linear regression models. Results revealed a weak willingness to participate in disaster preparedness. Only 28.08% of the respondents indicated that they were “very ready” to participate in voluntary disaster preparedness, and 14.65% showed “a little bit” of interest. The following was concluded: (1) Disaster volunteers’ social background variables were related to their willingness to participate in disaster preparedness. Compared to male volunteers, female volunteers were more willing to participate. Chinese Communist Party members were more willing to participate than non-m...
Source: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Article Source Type: research