(Almost) all Quiet Over One and a Half Years: A Longitudinal Study on Causality Between Key Determinants of Private Flood Mitigation.

Previous studies do not agree on the strengths and directions of the effects between risk appraisal, nonprotective, and protective responses in private flood mitigation. This may be due to the widespread use of cross-sectional survey designs, which infer causality from theoretical considerations alone. The present longitudinal study, in contrast, builds on the logic that cause precedes effect to confirm the direction of effects.

The Sources of Belief in Personal Capability: Antecedents of Self-Efficacy in Private Adaptation to Flood Risk.

Self-efficacy is one of the strongest and most consistent drivers of private flood mitigation behavior; however, the factors influencing self-efficacy in the context of flooding remain unclear. The present study examines three potential antecedents of self-efficacy: personal and vicarious experiences of floods or building-related events, social norms for private flood preparedness, and personal competencies such as technical abilities and social skills. While controlling for other drivers in a protection motivation theory (PMT) framework, these antecedents are tested as precursors of self-efficacy and intentions to improve flood resilience.

Bottom-up citizen initiatives as emergent actors in flood risk management: Mapping roles, relations and limitations.

The recent shift to individualisation of flood risk calls for a stronger involvement of private actors. Bottom-up citizen initiatives (BUIs) may bring together governmental bodies with people at risk. Drawing on a screening of existing BUIs in Europe, North America, and Australia and an in-depth analysis of three study sites, this paper maps BUI activities to stages in the risk management cycle and discusses the institutional, relational and social proximity between BUIs and other stakeholders.

Unpacking Protection Motivation Theory: evidence for a separate protective and non-protective route in private flood mitigation behavior.

Flood preparedness of private households is regarded an essential building block of integrated flood risk management. In the past decade, numerous empirical studies have employed the protection motivation theory (PMT) to explain flood mitigation behavior at the household level. However, much of this research has produced mixed results and could not consistently confirm the strength and direction of the relationships between the PMT components.

Trust and the communication of flood risks: comparing the roles of local governments, volunteers in emergency services, and neighbours.

Risk information need to be communicated by trusted groups, in order to promote attitude and behaviour change. We compare different levels of trust in local governments, volunteers in emergency and relief services, and neighbours, and how trust in these groups shapes citizens' perceptions and actions relating to flood risks. Structural equation modelling is applied to a sample of 2007 flood-prone households in Austria.