Building Resilience – Social Capital in Post–Disaster Recovery (Emersion: Emergent Village resources for communities of faith) - Hardcover

Aldrich, Daniel

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0226012875 ISBN 13: 9780226012872

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 2012

Synopsis

Each year, natural disasters threaten the strength and stability of communities worldwide. Yet responses to the challenges of recovery vary greatly and in ways that aren't always explained by the magnitude of the catastrophe or the amount of aid provided by national governments or the international community. The difference between resilience and disrepair, Daniel P. Aldrich shows, lies in the depth of communities' social capital. "Building Resilience" highlights the critical role of social capital in the ability of a community to withstand disaster and rebuild the infrastructure and ties that are at the foundation of any community. Aldrich examines the post-disaster responses of four distinct communities - Tokyo following the 1923 earthquake, Kobe after the 1995 earthquake, Tamil Nadu after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and New Orleans post-Katrina - and finds that those with robust social networks were better able to coordinate recovery. In addition to quickly disseminating information and assistance, communities with an abundance of social capital were able to minimize the migration of people and resources out of the area. With governments increasingly overstretched and natural disasters likely to increase in frequency and intensity, an understanding of what contributes to efficient reconstruction is more important than ever. "Building Resilience" underscores a critical component of an effective response.

About this title

Review:

"Why do some communities recover more quickly and fully than others? Using a comparative, interdisciplinary approach and elegantly crafted research, Daniel P. Aldrich shows that social capital is the dominant force driving post-disaster recovery. Building Resilience is social science at its best, with rich implications that will prompt a paradigm shift in disaster planning."

--Arjen Boin, Utrecht University School of Governance

"Aldrich makes the argument that social capital produces negative externalities as well as positive results, arguing, in particular, that bonding social capital has been used to isolate groups by race, class, and ethnicity. . . . [He] does not rely on metaphor or anecdote like many researchers who study social capital. He employs rigorous mixed methodologies across several cases. The book deserves praise."
-- (07/16/2013)

"Aldrich's work is crucial to those charged with managing public affairs. . . . [Building Resilience] has profound implications for the role of politicians, bureaucrats, researchers, and nongovernmental organizations in guiding resource allocation."
-- (12/16/2013)

The analysis in Building Resilience . . . is powerful as it provides convincing evidence that social resources--the connections local communities have accumulated over the years to maintain their livelihood--can be as important as, or at times more so, than physical infrastructure for a quicker post-disaster recovery. The book will be useful for decision makers, helping them to achieve an effective preparedness to deal with unexpected disasters."-- (02/24/2014)

"Building Resilience is a compact and dense book grounded in serious research and an impressive knowledge of the relevant social science literature. . . . The book is indispensable reading for students of disaster relief and reconstruction."-- (03/24/2014)

"Aldrich's work is an example of social science at its best: It is methodologically sophisticated, based on a comprehensive collection of original data, is highly engaged in the issues it is analysing, uses a mixed method approach, and has an honest ambition to deliver policy-relevant advice. As such it delivers a genuine contribution to the discipline and might also help to improve the way in which disaster management is carried out on the ground."-- (08/06/2014)

"The last decade has witnessed an explosion of scholarship on the form, process, and consequences of post-disaster recovery and rebuilding. . . . Aldrich's Building Resilience contributes to this burgeoning literature by offering a novel analysis of the ways in which social capital influences the pace and trajectory of post-disaster community recovery. . . . The book should be of great interest not only to disaster researchers but to policymakers, community activists, and scholars interested in empirical applications of the social capital concept."-- (01/26/2015)

"Aldrich's clearly written conclusion makes concrete suggestions that might guide governments' preparedness strategies. . . . This is a useful book and especially of value to the extent that it breaks the unacknowledged barriers that often prevent us from using what we have learned in studies of Asian societies to inform our understanding of Western nations. I hope the book will encourage other sorts of far-reaching, creative, multi-method comparative studies like it."-- (02/26/2015)

"The book makes a significant contribution to the disaster and social capital literatures. It is a thought-provoking read not only for political scientists but also for other social scientists with an interest in social capital and/or disasters. The book is also quite informative for international agencies and government agencies involved in disaster relief, recovery, and mitigation, as well as with residents of disaster-prone or affected areas, as it shows how 'social capital, like other resources, can be nurtured through both local initiatives and foreign interventions."-- (04/06/2015)

"[Building Resilience] is not only a careful documentation of the role of social relations in four post-disaster settings, but also reads like a handbook on social science methods. Aldrich explains how critical case selection is when seeking causal inference. Throughout his cases, Aldrich gives particular attention to methodological integrity and clarity."-- (04/21/2015)

About the Author:

Daniel P. Aldrich is associate professor of political science at Purdue University. He is the author of Site Fights: Divisive Facilities and Civil Society in Japan and the West.

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0226012875
• ISBN 13: 9780226012872
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256