Disasters and Human Apathy

Although disasters may result in an outpouring of compassion, many victims still suffer from chronic need of assistance in a disaster’s wake. Disaster preparedness obviously plays a critical role in obviating the need for intensive relief efforts, but no disaster preparations can entirely eliminate the possibility that a disaster can generate tremendous loss of life and destruction of property. People may show apathy in the face of the possibility of meeting with destruction themselves and losing their homes because the possibility seems so remote before a storm hits or if previous predictions have not come to fruition in a particularly terrible fashion. If others meet with disaster, populations may show apathy likewise due to the fact that the disaster is in a relatively remote location, and is happening to people to whom they feel little connection.
Fatigue, in other words, may be one of the primary reasons people show apathy in the face of disaster. Repeated warnings about danger eventually numb the impulse to react with anxiety, according to Wilde (2013), who notes, “past personal experience in ‘riding out’ storms can lead people to feel complacent” along with “previous warnings that proved to be false can result in apathetic responses when another warning occurs” (par. 3). Although an abundance of caution is important when issuing warnings on one hand, being overly alarmist can ultimately be counterproductive, and result in people ignoring warnings altogether. One of the benefits of online technology is the ability to adjust threat warnings based upon the most relevant data over time. It is also possible to inform people of previous destruction that has occurred in the wake of the storm to underline the possibility of the threat occurring to them.
Fatigue can also take the form of compassion fatigue. When people are bombarded by images of disaster around the world, they may be less inclined to give or to care at all, because the need appears to be so overwhelming. Personally experiencing a disaster may counteract this in some instances, as it can make what people are going through elsewhere seem more relatable. According to Carter (2014), denial is one of the most common symptoms of compassion fatigue. Denying that disasters have affected others can be rooted in the desire to deny that such events can happen to them, further compounding the problem of people ignoring credible warnings and failing to prepare or evacuate.
Apathy in the face of personal threats may also result from the fact that the logistical complications of having to evacuate seem so great, while the possibility of something bad occurring can seem so remote. Again, information can be a powerful counterweight to this. If people are well-informed about escape routes, shelters which can accommodate them and their loved ones (including pets), and are aware that others are availing themselves of shelter, they may be more inclined to see leaving as a viable possibility, rather than hunkering down when it is unwise to do so (Resnick, 2017).
In general, using multiple sources of information, including social media, broadcasting, and phone alerts, has been found to be most effective in getting people to act (Wilde, 2013). The downside to this is, however, that when information is phrased in a different manner, through different channels, this can generate contradictory meanings and impressions in the minds of listeners. Clarity in communication above all else in all channels must be prioritized. When information is ambiguous, it is easier to ignore.
Thus change is possible in regards to how people to react to disasters. A culture of vigilance and preparation rather than lauding people who stay and ride out disasters is needed. Communication about the possibility of future disasters, the spread of information about the reality of disasters that have occurred, and offering meaningful steps that people can take versus engaging in passive acceptance are building blocks of cultural change.
References
Carter, A. (2014). Are you suffering from compassion fatigue? Psychology Today. Retrieved
from: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/high-octane-women/201407/are-you- suffering-compassion-fatigue
Resnick, B. (2017).Why some people never evacuate during a hurricane, according to a
psychologist. Vox. Retrieved from: https://www.vox.com/science-and- health/2017/8/25/16202296/hurricane-florence-2018-evacuation-psychology
Wilde, C. (2013). Complacency, apathy lead people to ignore disaster warnings, researchers say.
Retrieved from: http://www.buffalo.edu/news/releases/2013/06/048.html