Trust among decision makers and its consequences in emergency response operations

Christian Uhr, MSc; Olof Ekman, MSc

doi:10.5055/jem.2008.0019

Authors

Christian Uhr, MSc
Olof Ekman, MSc

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5055/jem.2008.0019

Keywords:

trust, emergency response, crisis response, defining trust, consequences of trust

Abstract

In an emergency response operation, trust can have an influence on the efficiency in communication between different decision makers and how the networks of these decision makers are formed. Consequently, it might affect the efficiency, flexibility, and adaptation capability in the response system as a whole. Trust could generally be described as a relation between a trustor and a trustee where the expected behavior and competence of the trustee in a specific context, estimated by the trustor, is a central core in the concept. On the basis of a literature review and interviews with Australian emergency response practitioners, this article discusses relevant characteristics of trust and its consequences in emergency response. The content emphasizes the need for further development of descriptive analysis of the processes underlying the formal charts and documents to understand authentic conditions and further develop valid normative theories for emergency response management.

Author Biographies

Christian Uhr, MSc

Licentiate, Department of Fire Safety Engineering and Systems Safety, Faculty of Engineering, Lund University, Lund, Skane, Sweden.

Olof Ekman, MSc

Lieutenant Colonel, Department of Fire Safety Engineering and Systems Safety, Faculty of Engineering, Lund University, Lund, Skane, Sweden.

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