Social Networking Services and Virtual Organizations in the Crisis and Immediate Post-Catastrophe Response Processes of the 3/11 Japan Disaster

The New School, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

The purpose of this project is to investigate the use of social media during a crisis and during post-catastrophe relief and recovery efforts, in circumstances in which much traditional communication infrastructure has been disrupted. Specifically, the goals of the project are (a) to better understand how internet-based interactive communication tools can increase preparedness for disaster and (b) to understand how public perceptions of social media as a focal point for volunteerism may be changed by their use in a crisis context. Ikegami will visit Japan to study the effects of the disaster on-site, collaborate with Japanese researchers, meet with key persons in government agencies and NGOs, and analyze reports in the Japanese language. She will study how agencies as well as NGOs used rapidly shifting social media to handle this unprecedented disaster. Intellectual Merit: The project will integrate theoretical research on social capital with research on virtual networks created by new media. The findings will inform the areas of crisis management, volunteerism, social networks, and other areas of human-centered computing. Broader Impacts. The project will lead to new knowledge about the role of social media in crisis response as well as inform policy makers and nonprofit organizations about how to best use social media to engage civic involvement in disaster relief efforts.