Social Networks in Flight: Breakaway Structures and Disaster Survival

• In Event: 2360 - Group Processes

Abstract

Contrary to popular depictions of individualistic flight or “panic,” behavior in disaster situations (e.g., building fires) is usually highly structured and collective in nature. In such situations, people tend to adhere to the obligations and expectations that are embedded in their preexisting roles and relationships. Accordingly, people tend to survive or perish in groups – specifically, alongside those to whom they were connected before the disaster. This paper uses network theory to expand on this collective-behaviorist account. There is heterogeneity with respect to the internal configurations of social ties that compose small groups. Some are composed of multiple cohesive subsets of members who can split off from each other during evacuation without any violation of the group’s internal social norms or role-based expectations. We argue that groups that possess this “breakaway” characteristic can respond to disasters more flexibly. We explore this possibility using data on 49 large groups that consisted of 238 people who were present at the Beverly Hills Supper Club Fire of 1977, which killed 165 people. We show that fatality rates were significantly lower in groups that were internally structured in such a way that they could split up in different ways during the escape while still maintaining their strongest social bonds.

Authors

• Benjamin Cornwell, Cornell University

• Jing-Mao Ho