Flooding and the New Normal: The Role of Gender in Experiences of Post-Disaster Ontological Security

• In Event: 2251 - Section on Environmental Sociology Roundtables (1 hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: 20. Sociology of Disasters

Abstract

For nearly 40 years, disaster researchers have written about the disruption to routines and familiar landmarks, often called their ontological security, which affected residents often experience. Yet surprisingly little of this work looks at who is most likely to experience these feelings of disruption. Using a representative set of survey data collected after the costliest flood in Canadian history, and complemented with follow-up interview data from 40 affected residents, this article analyzes how demographic characteristics, including gender, as well as place attachment, and direct material impact of the flood impact residents’ feelings of disruption and loss. Findings indicate that women and residents with greater social and emotional ties to their neighbourhoods were mostly likely to experience disrupted ontological security. Having one’s home flood and being asked to evacuate were also both significant predictors. The paper concludes by discussing the significance of these findings for policymakers and service providers.

Authors

• Tim Haney, Mount Royal University

• Daran Gray-Scholz, Mount Royal University