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Cited by 44Disaster Management and ResiliencePublic Relations and Crisis CommunicationRisk Perception and Management

Digital disparities and vulnerability: mobile phone use, information behaviour, and disaster preparedness in Southeast Asia

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Lai, Chih‐Hui, Chib, Arul, Ling, Rich·2018·Disasters
DOI 10.1111/disa.12279
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Abstract

This paper proposes an ecological view to investigate how disparities in mobile technology use reflect vulnerabilities in communities vis‐à‐vis disaster preparedness. Data (n=1,603) were collected through a multi‐country survey conducted equally in rural and urban areas of Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines, and Vietnam, where mobile technology has become a dominant and ubiquitous communication and information medium. The findings show that smartphone users' routinised use of mobile technology and their risk perception are significantly associated with disaster preparedness behaviour indirectly through disaster‐related information sharing. In addition to disaster‐specific social support, smartphone users' disaster‐related information repertoires are another strong influencing factor. In contrast, non‐smartphone users are likely to rely solely on receipt of disaster‐specific social support as the motivator of disaster preparedness. The results also reveal demographic and rural–urban differences in disaster information behaviour and preparedness. Given the increasing shift from basic mobile phone models to smartphones, the theoretical and policy‐oriented implications of digital disparities and vulnerability are discussed.

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  • The high availability of mobile phones and power banks potentially make mobile phones and social media good sources for risk communication.

    “The high availability of mobile phones and power banks potentially make mobile phones and social media good sources for risk communication (Myat Htut Nyunt et al. 2015; Cheng et al. 2016; Lai et al. 2018).”

    From Disaster preparedness and resilience at household level in Yangon, Myanmar (2022) · cites this paper as Lai et al. 2018

    The Information repertoires and disaster preparedness section describes increasingly ubiquitous mobile phones as a way to access risk information, and the Introduction identifies social media as a source of disaster information (page numbers unavailable). The paper does not address power banks, so it does not support that part of the proposed reason these channels would be useful. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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Authors
Lai, C., Chib, A., & Ling, R.
Affiliations
  • National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (TW)
  • Nanyang Technological University (SG)
Corresponding author
Lai, Chih‐Hui
ORCID
Venue
Disasters
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2018-03-26
Volume
42
Issue
4
Pages
734-760
ISSN
  • 0361-3666 (ISSN-L)
  • 1467-7717
DOI
10.1111/disa.12279
OpenAlex
W2791998576
Cited by
44
References
1
Citations by year
2026: 9 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 1
FWCI
7.46
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor)
Locations
  • Disasters (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DR-NTU (Nanyang Technological University) (submittedVersion)
Funders
United States Agency for International Development
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Disaster Management and Resilience
  • Social Sciences › Communication › Public Relations and Crisis Communication
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Risk Perception and Management
Keywords
disaster preparedness, mobile phone use, smartphones, information behavior, disaster information sharing, social support, risk perception, urban-rural differences, ecological perspective, Southeast Asia, disaster risk communication
MeSH terms
Cell Phone Use, Adult, Asia, Southeastern, Disaster Planning, Female, Humans, Male, Vulnerable Populations, Information Seeking Behavior, Digital Divide

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