Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-20-2024
Abstract
Communities near the wildland urban interface (WUI) are exposed to a mix of three interconnected hazards (wildfire, flood, and mudslide), and understanding multi-hazard perceptions is critically important for emergency preparation and hazard mitigation—particularly given the WUI’s rapid expansion and intensifying environmental hazards. Based on a survey of residents living near recent burn scars in Southern California, we document cross-over effects in hazard perceptions, where resident experience with one hazard was associated with greater hazard rankings for other hazards. Additionally, for all three hazards analyzed we document perceptions of increasing hazard levels with increasing spatial scales (home, near-home, neighborhood, and community), providing evidence of spatial optimism, or the tendency to discount proximate hazards. This study stresses the importance of using a multi-hazard and multi-scale approach for understanding and responding to local level environmental hazards.
Recommended Citation
Houston, D., Pérez Figueroa, O., Jong-Levinger, A., Schubert, J. E., & Sanders, B. F. (2024). Spatial Optimism and Cross-Over Effects in the Perceptions of Interconnected Wildfire, Flood, and Mudslide Hazards. Environment and Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1177/00139165241275482
Copyright
The authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Included in
Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment Commons, Environmental Monitoring Commons, Other Environmental Sciences Commons
Comments
This article was originally published in Environment and Behavior in 2024. https://doi.org/10.1177/00139165241275482