COMMUNITY LEVEL INFLUENCE ON INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOURS - FINAL REPORT FOR THE HUMAN BEHAVIOUR UNDER STRESS PROJECT

Only one community-level variable, the ‘Proportion of Respondents Involved in a Community Preparedness Activity’ was a significant predictor: the greater the proportion of the community involved in community preparedness activities, the greater the overall level of preparedness. [...] Only one community-level variable, the ‘Proportion of Respondents Involved in a Community Preparedness Activity’ was a significant predictor of community-level variance; the greater the proportion of the community involved in community preparedness activities, the greater the overall level of preparedness. [...] These include the strength and density of community networks; how agencies in the community (e.g., the local fire brigade) and community members share relevant information and resources; how “embedded” these agencies are in the local community and how much they are trusted; the nature of the local culture and climate of opinion about fires and fire preparedness; and the role of community leaders a. [...] Understanding the interplay of these factors is important in accurately portraying the profile of a well prepared and resilient community and in devising appropriate interventions to improve preparedness and to minimise the adverse consequences of bushfires. [...] There appear to be two main approaches in the relevant literature to understanding such differences: on the one hand, a focus on the importance of the actions of individuals and on the other a focus on the importance of community level actions including zonings, policies, and the investment in fire suppression equipment.