Handbook of Disaster Research

From the reviews: <p> The Handbook of Disaster Research will, without a doubt, be the most important publication of its type during this decade. Just about everyone who is anyone in the disaster research community has shared their knowledge on the important topics of the day. The authors and the publisher are to be congratulated for completing the book that will be widely sought after by practitioners, researchers and students of disaster planning and response. Thank you for this outstanding contribution to the field. <p>Henry W. Fischer III, Director, Center for Disaster Research & Education, Millersville University <p> The Handbook of Disaster Research will generate considerable excitement amongst international disaster research and management professionals. Finally, a volume that takes on the task of articulating and unpacking the many social complexities of modern disasters and catastrophes. By taking a multi-disciplinary perspective, the Handbook addresses the very pressing need to better understand the social dimensions of disaster. Analyses of key social-psychological concepts, such as risk and uncertainty, stand beside sociological assessments of class, community, organisation, technology and the media. It is academically weighty, boasting contributions from world-leading scholars. Yet, the Handbook offers a very balanced set of analyses that will undoubtedly appeal to not only the researcher, but the practitioner and the policy-maker alike. <p>Dr. Derek Bopping, Defence Science and Technology Organisation, Department of Defence, Australia <p> This is an amazing handbook. An impressive array of authors, including practitioners as well as academics, provideintellectual depth and breadth on disaster, risk, and uncertainty. A must have for anyone who wants to know the cutting edges of disaster research. The Handbook of Disaster Research is unlike any other handbook Ia (TM)ve seen. It covers the field, but does a great deal more than that. For it is provocative and creative, each chapter providing much, much more than mere coverage. By this I mean the authors present and develop new ideas, about disaster, risk, uncertainty, warning, or, more generally, social behavior. This is not surprising when you look at the list of individual authors. Luminaries in their fields, they represent some of the most creative thinkers in the social sciences today. It is surprising, however, to find so much creativity in a Handbook. The editors have done a superb job. Ia (TM)m impressed, too, with the breadth of expertise that is represented. Practitioners as well as academics, the old guard of disaster research as well as the young, rising stars, and the refreshing appearance of scholars from places other than the United States. I need this book on my shelf. <p>Lee Clarke, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey <p>Author of Worst Cases: Terror and Catastrophe in the Popular Imagination; Mission Improbable: Using Fantasy Documents to Tame Disaster; and Terrorism and Disaster: New Threats, New Ideas. <p> The Handbook of Disaster Research is an impressive piece of work. It will definitively become an essential reference for students, social scientists, engineers and disaster managers as well.Through the compilation of exemplary and contemporary works by internationally very well known and respected researchers in the field, it finallyprovides a theoretical core to a field that has been labeled by some orthodox social scientists as atheoretical.At the same time, its multi- and inter-disciplinary focus and its applied orientation illustrate the complexity of the disaster phenomena which traditionally has been address from a limited perspective that emphasizes technological fixes to what is essentially sociological in nature. <p>Marla Perez-Lugo, Center for Applied Social Research, University of Puerto Rico-MayagA1/4ez <p> The book, which is based on the principle that disasters are social constructions and focuses on social science disaster research, is a timely and much-needed contribution to the field a ] . The book examines issues dealing with the concept of a disaster and methodological issues relating to research on disasters a ] . the book is a valuable reference for social scientists studying the effects of disasters on humans, as well as for sociologists, public health specialists, demographers, economists and political scientists. (Martin Mbugua, www.udel.edu, February, 2007) <p> What is necessary to understand an unthinkable event in an inconceivable context? Perhaps the only positive element of recent world events has been that scholars are making progress in learning how to prepare, what to do, and how to add human-caused catastrophe to disaster situations. This well-reasoned, accessible and comprehensive collection of 32 articles by leading authorities focus on opportunity as they address the proper definition of a disaster, heuristic approaches, methodology, the role of sophisticated systems, morbidity and mortality, gender, global and local economics, local management, community processes suchas warning and evacuation, search and rescue, sustainable recovery, shelter and housing, business recovery, organizational adaptation, the role of research, national systems, transitional societies, terrorism, homeland security, the mass media, popular culture, commemoration, applications to the classroom, research translated into practice, technology, the growth of the market, and reducing US vulnerability. (SciTech Book News, March 2007) <p> Handbook of Disaster Research is a timely and much needed contribution to the field of disasters and research. a ] For individuals interested in disasters and emergency response, this book provides some new and different perspectives on disasters and disaster research that would be valuable to practitioners, including technicians, nurses, and physicians. a ] For researchers and scientists across disciplines, this handbook provides a ] future research agendas. a ] This book is well-written a ] . Generally speaking, the writing style is clear, concise, and readable a ] . (Patricia A Hinton Walker, Respiratory Care, Vol. 53 (1), 2008) <p> This handbook may be the most important publication of this decade as the experts of the disaster community have shared in 32 chapters their multi-disciplinary knowledge on important topics of the days, addressing international practitioners as well as academics, theoreticians, researchers, sociologists, management professionals, and students of disaster, hazard, and catastrophe planning, prevention, and response. a ] The text, figures and tables are good. (Karl H. Wolf, academici, January, 2009)