Crisis Communication in a Natural Disaster: A Chaos Theory Approach

Dian Purworini, Dini Purnamasari, Desi Puji Hartuti

Abstract


Various studies indicated the need for crisis communications in natural disasters because a disaster can trigger crisis. Disasters that occur in remote areas need a strategised approach and tailored communication plan to suit with the characteristics of the local community. This research uses chaos theory to describe crisis communication and analyses the role of communications during floods in the Klaten region in Indonesia. Flood is often struck in this area. The concepts of chaos theory are analysed during this disaster, such as guidance on the initial conditions, the shock of the situation, the changes of the existing system, and the emergence of a helper. In-depth interviews were conducted with 14 informants from residents in two sub-districts of Klaten and 4 staff in the disaster menagement district office Klaten region (BPBD). The results indicated that although the same catastrophic pattern is observed, people still find it shocking everytime. It was also observed that ideas or strategy to deal with the flood are made spontaneously following the disaster, often in an urgent state. The role of the helper is also very memorable for the community. The communication channel used are informal, face to face and utilising traditional channels. The ability of social media has not been employed by the villagers, particularly the older generation, nevertheless the younger generation could still explore this platform during crisis. Future research can evaluate another important field that appears to be important in disaster communication, which is public diplomacy. This hopefully could explore more asumptions of the chaos theory during disaster.

 

Keywords: Disaster, chaos theory, flood, crisis, crisis communication.


Full Text:

PDF

References


Abud, M. (2013). Indonesia: Crisis communication channels (Case studies in humanitarian communication preparedness and response). Internews, 1–72.

Ahmad, J., & Lateh, H. (2018). Media and the environment in Malaysia: An analysis on news coverage of landslide disaster in Kuala Lumpur. Jurnal Komunikasi: Malaysian Journal of Communication, 32(2), 525–544.

Baker, N. D. (2016). Making it worse than what really happened: Social chaos and preparedness as problematic mythologies in disaster communication. Perspective, 1(May), 2011–2014.

Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana [BNPB]. (2015). Definisi dan Jenis Bencana. Retrieved April 19, 2016, from http://www.bnpb.go.id/pengetahuan-bencana/definisi-dan-jenis-bencana

Bowen, S. (2009). Ethical responsibility and guidelines for managing issues of risk and risk communication. In D. O’Hair & R. L. Heath (Eds.), Handbook of risk and crisis communication (pp. 343–363). Madison Ave: Taylor & Francis e-Library.

Critchfield, A. J., Oti, D. A., Sun, W., Vance, D. C., & Carter, H. H. (2006). Crisis communication and cultural constructions of calamities: Preparedness in Guyana, Thailand and the United States. Retrieved December 1, 2018, from https://www.sylff.org/support_programs/past_programs/pastinitiatives/

Donovan, K. (2010). Doing social volcanology: Exploring volcanic culture in Indonesia. Area, 42(1), 117–126.

Eiser, J. R., Bostrom, A., Burton, I., Johnston, D. M., Mcclure, J., Paton, D., … White, M. P. (2012). International journal of disaster risk reduction risk interpretation and action: A conceptual framework for responses to natural hazards. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 1, 5–16.

Ferguson, D. P., Wallace, J. D., & Chandler, R. C. (2012). Rehabilitating your organization’s image: Public relations professionals’ perceptions of the effectiveness and ethicality of image repair strategies in crisis situations. Public Relations Journal, 6(1), 1–19.

Gultom, D. I. (2016). Community-based disaster communication: how does it become trustworthy?. Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, 25(4), 478–491.

Horsley, J. S. (2006). Reliability in chaos: Crisis communication in state emergency management agencies. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina.

Horsley, S. (2010). Crisis-adaptive public information: A model for reliability in chaos. In W. T. Coombs & S. J. Holladay (Eds.), The handbook of crisis communication (pp. 550–567). USA: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Juneza, D., & Purworini, D. (2016). Respon para disabilitas terhadap komunikasi krisis BPBD (Badan Penanggulangan Bencana Daerah) dan tim SAR Klaten tahun 2016. Profetik, 10(1), 80–96.

Kiel, D. L. (1995). Chaos theory and disaster response management: Lessons for managing periods of extreme instability. In What Disaster Response Management Can Learn From Chaos Theory (pp. 1–20).

Koehler, G. A., Kress, G. G., & Miller, R. L. (1997). What disaster response management can learn from Chaos theory. In Conference Proceedings of May 18–19 (pp. 1–34). Darby, PA: Diane Publishing.

Koran Sindo. (2016). Klaten jadi daerah percontohan. Retrieved from http://koran-sindo.com/page/news/2016-11-14/5/12/Klaten_Jadi_Daerah_Percontohan

Lauzen, M. M. (2016). Image repair: A case study of Thierry Frémaux and the Cannes film festival. Public Relations Review, 42(1), 170–175.

Lee, B. K. (2009). Crisis, culture, and communication. In P. J. Kalbfleisch (Ed.), Communication Yearbook 29 (29th ed., pp. 275–310). New Jersey: Taylor & Francis e-Library.

Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (1994). Qualitative Data Analysis (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Inc.

Moorthy, R., Benny, G., & Gill, S. S. (2018). Disaster communication in managing vulnerabilities. Jurnal Komunikasi: Malaysian Journal of Communication, 34(2), 51–66.

Mustaffa, C. S., Ahmad Marzuki, N., Khalid, M. S., Sakdan, M. F., & Sipon, S. (2018). Understanding Malaysian Malays communication characteristics in reducing psychological impact on flood victims. Jurnal Komunikasi: Malaysian Journal of Communication, 34(1), 20–36.

Oliveira, M. D. F. (2013). Multicultural environments and their challenges to crisis communication. Journal of Business Communication, 50(3), 253–277.

Piotrowski, P. (2006). Hurricane Katrina and organization development: Part 1 (Implications of chaos theory). Organization Development Journal, 24(3), 10–19.

Purworini, D. (2016). Komunikasi krisis dalam konflik internal Karaton Surakarta Hadiningrat: Studi kasus interpretif tahun 2014-2016. Bandung: Universitas Padjadjaran.

Purworini, D., Kuswarno, E., Hadisiwi, P., & Rahmat, A. (2017). Crisis communication in an internal conflict: A social constructionist perspective. Pertanika J. Soc. Sci. & Hum, 25(S), 1–10.

Sellnow, T. L., Seeger, M. W., Seeger, T. L., Sellnow, M. W., Sellnow, T. L., Seeger, M. W., … Sellnow, M. W. (2013). Theorizing crisis communication (1st ed.). West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Sellnow, T. L., Seeger, M. W., & Ulmer, R. R. (2002). Chaos theory informational needs and natural disasters. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 30(4), 269–292.

Spence, P. R., Lachlan, K. A., & Griffin, D. R. (2007). Crisis communication, race, and natural disasters. Journal of Black Studies, 37(4), 539–554.

Tauhid, C. D. K., Fathani, T. F., & Legono, D. (2017). Multi-disaster risk analysis of Klaten regency, Central Java, Indonesia. Journal of the Civil Engineering Forum, 3(3), 135–148.

Taylor, M., & Perry, D. C. (2005). Diffusion of traditional and new media tactics in crisis communication. Public Relations Review, 31(2), 209–217.

Tobin, P. (2016). An introduction to chaos theory. Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/c60c/a70e73c09b0e7dba764704d4176db90d9000.pdf

Viverita, Kusumastuti, R. D., Husodo, Z. A., Suardi, L., & Danarsari, D. N. (2014). Households perceptions on factors affecting resilience towards natural disasters in Indonesia. The South East Asian Journal of Management, 8(1), 13–28.

Yin, R. K. (2011). Qualitative research from start to finish. NY: The Guilford Press.


Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


e-ISSN: 2289-1528