The assessment of household preparedness in an earthquake-prone area, Kermanshah, Iran

In this study, an household earthquake preparedness questionnaire is developed and household preparedness is assessed in the quake-affected and quake-prone area of Kermanshah, Iran. In line with Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) and Extended Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), a non-experimental exploratory mixed methods study was designed in which both qualitative and quantitative measures for data collection and data analysis were considered. A household preparedness tool was developed through the processes of reviewing the related literature, interviewing informed experts, a piloting phase, expert judgment scrutiny, item modification, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) relying on Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The 36-item scale was administered to 218 households in the city of Kermanshah, Iran, an earthquake-prone and earthquake-affected area. The results revealed that the participants were neither completely aware of the household preparedness notions, nor were they ready in the face of earthquakes, although they had experienced two devastating earthquakes in 2017 and 2018. The focus group discussions (FGDs) with households, experts, and city authorities also confirmed the results of the questionnaire, highlighting the effect of both informal and formal training with respect to earthquake culture, mitigation behaviour, earthquake social awareness, and building trust in the public sector for Earthquake Risk Reduction (ERR) outcomes. It was also revealed that recognition of household preparedness factors and prioritising practices in this respect is of paramount significance for training people in the community and at an individual level to be more conscious and considerate of measures they can take for earthquakes. The findings could be used to inform further work by disaster managers, public organizations, individuals in the social context, and university researchers sensitive to disaster management.