Moved to partner: A case study of faith-based congregations in disaster response

Julie H. Elliott, MS; Gary R. Webb, PhD

doi:10.5055/jem.0712

Authors

Julie H. Elliott, MS https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2136-102X
Gary R. Webb, PhD

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5055/jem.0712

Keywords:

faith-based organizations, recovery, disaster response, Hurricane Harvey, churches, emergence, organizational adaption, collaboration

Abstract

When disaster strikes, many players are involved in the response: local, state, and federal governments; public entities; community and faith-based organizations (FBOs). Some of these players are prepped to respond to disasters, while others emerge spontaneously to assist when need (or perceived need) arises. Consistently, FBOs are involved with disaster response efforts. “Faith-Based Congregations” or “FBCs” are a subsect of FBOs that are formally organized, stationary religious congregations such as churches, temples, mosques, etc. Unlike some FBOs, FBCs are embedded in communities and steeped in those communities’ cultures. The value of FBCs to disaster management is recognized at the federal level, as FEMA encourages local emergency managers to engage their “Whole Community.” Though shown to provide for many needs following disaster, FBCs’ role in disaster is largely understudied. Additionally, the mechanics of engaging with FBCs are not simple to implement. The role of FBCs, how they adapt, and the predictors of their involvement need to be better understood in order for improved cross-sector collaboration pre- and post-disaster.

The purpose of this study was to explore the role of FBCs in the disaster response process and how FBCs are impacted by the early transition to recovery. This study addressed two primary research questions: nnWhat is the role of FBCs during disaster response?

How do FBCs change (temporarily and permanently) during disaster response, and what factors may promote or inhibit change?

To answer these questions, this qualitative study employed telephone interviews with leaders of FBCs who helped provide disaster response assistance to those impacted by Hurricane Harvey in Katy, Texas.

Author Biographies

Julie H. Elliott, MS

Joseph R. Biden School of Public Policy, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware

Gary R. Webb, PhD

Department of Emergency Management and Disaster Science, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas

References

Quarantelli EL: The Disaster Research Center (DRC) field studies of organized behavior in the crisis time period of disasters. Preliminary paper #254. 1997.

Atkinson CL: The 2011 flood in minot (North Dakota, USA) and the role of faith-based and nonprofit groups in hazard event response and recovery. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2014; 8: 166-176.

Bielefeld W, Cleveland WS: Faith-based organizations as service providers and their relationship to government. Nonprof Volunt Sect Q. 2013; 42(3): 468-494.

Chaves M, Eagle A: Congregations and social services: An update from the third wave of the national congregations study. Religions (Basel, Switzerland). 2016; 7(5): 55.

Stajura M, Glik D, Eisenman D, et al.: Perspectives of community- and faith-based organizations about partnering with local health departments for disasters. IJERPH. 2012; 9(7): 2293-2311.

Cooper KR, Cooper LO: Partners, not providers: A collaboration typology for congregations and community. Nonprof Volunt Sect Q. 2021; 50(5): 919-938.

Chaves M: Congregations in America. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2004.

Dynes RR: Organizational involvement and changes in community structure in disaster. Am Behav Sci (Beverly Hills). 1970; 13(3): 430-439.

Tierney KJ, Lindell MK, Perry RW: Moving into action: Individual and group behavior in disasters. In: Facing the Unexpected. Washington, DC: National Academies Press, 2001: 81-120.

Fritz C: Disasters and Mental Health: Therapeutic Principles Drawn from Disaster Studies. Newark, DE: University of Delaware Disaster Research Center.

Dynes R: In: Quarantelli EL, Dynes RR (eds.): Organized Behavior in Disaster (Vol. 3). Columbus, OH: The Disaster Research Center, 1985.

Stallings RA, Quarantelli EL: Emergent citizen groups and emergency management. Public Adm Rev. 1985; 45: 93-100.

Drabek TE, McEntire DA: Emergent phenomena and the sociology of disaster: Lessons, trends and opportunities from the research literature. Disaster Prevention Manag. 2003; 12(2): 97-112.

Webb GR: Individual and Organizational Response to Natural Disasters and Other Crisis Events: The Continuing Value of the DRC Typology. Newark, DE: University of Delaware Disaster Research Center, 1999.

Eller W, Gerber BJ, Branch LE: Voluntary nonprofit organizations and disaster management: Identifying the nature of intersector coordination and collaboration in disaster service assistance provision. Risk Hazards Crisis Public Policy. 2015; 6(2): 223-238.

Simo G, Bies AL: The role of nonprofits in disaster response: An expanded model of cross-sector collaboration. Public Adm Rev. 2007; 67(1): 125-142.

Bryson JM, Crosby BC, Stone MM: The design and implementation of cross-sector collaborations: Propositions from the literature. Public Adm Rev. 2006; 66(1): 44-55.

McEntire DA: Coordinating multi-organisational responses to disaster: Lessons from the March 28, 2000, fort worth tornado. Disaster Prev Manag. 2002; 11(5): 369-379.

Federal Emergency Management Agency: A Whole Community Approach to Emergency Management: Principles, Themes, and Pathways for Action. 2011. Available at https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/2020-07/whole_community_dec2011__2.pdf. Accessed June 20, 2021.

Koch H, Franco ZE, Sullivan T, et al.: Community views of the federal emergency management agency’s “whole community” strategy in a complex US city: Re-envisioning societal resilience. Technol Forecast Soc Change. 2017; 121: 31-38.

Putnam RD: Tuning in, tuning out: The strange disappearance of social Capital in America. APSC. 1995; 28(4): 664-683.

Aldrich DP, Meyer MA: Social capital and community resilience. Am Behav Sci (Beverly Hills). 2015; 59(2): 254-269.

Airriess CA, Li W, Leong KJ, et al.: Church-based social capital, networks and geographical scale: Katrina evacuation, relocation, and recovery in a new Orleans Vietnamese American community. Geoforum. 2008; 39(3): 1333-1346.

Rivera JD: Reliance on faith-based organizations for tangible assistance in times of disaster: Exploring the influence of bonding social capital. Sociol Spectr. 2018; 38(1): 39-50.

Szreter S, Woolcock M: Health by association? Social capital, social theory, and the political economy of public health. Int J Epidemiol. 2004; 33(4): 650-667.

Rivera JD, Nickels AE: Social capital, community resilience, and faith-based organizations in disaster recovery: A case study of Mary Queen of Vietnam catholic church. Risk Hazards Crisis Public Policy. 2014; 5(2): 178-211.

Pew Research Center: US Public Becoming Less Religious. 2015. Available at https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2015/11/03/u-spublic-becoming-less-religious/. Accessed October 9, 2018.

Phillips B, Jenkins P: The roles of faith-based organizations after Hurricane Katrina. In: Kilmer RP, Gil-Rivas V, Tedeschi RD, et al. (eds.): Helping Families and Communities Recover from Disaster: Lessons Learned from Hurricane Katrina and Its Aftermath. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2010: 215-238.

Pant AT, Kirsch TD, Subbarao IR, et al.: Faith-based organizations and sustainable sheltering operations in Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina: Implications for informal network utilization. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2008; 23(1): 48-54.

Sheikhi RA, Seyedin H, Qanizadeh G, et al.: Role of religious institutions in disaster risk management: A systematic review. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2021; 15(2): 239-254.

Quarantelli EL: Ten Criteria for Evaluating the Management of Community Disasters. University of Delaware DRC Preliminary Paper #241. Newark, DE: University of Delaware Disaster Research Center, 1996.

Hirono T, Blake ME: The role of religious leaders in the restoration of hope following natural disasters. SAGE Open. 2017; 7(2): 215824401770700.

Murphy H, Pudlo J: Bridging cultures: Nonprofit, church, and emergency management agency collaboration after the May 2013 Oklahoma tornado outbreak. J Emerg Manag (Weston, Mass.). 2017; 15(3): 157-174.

Gianisa A, Le De L: The role of religious beliefs and practices in disaster. Disaster Prevent Manag. 2018; 27(1): 74-86.

Bradfield C, Wiley ML: After the flood: The response of ministers to a natural disaster. Sociol Anal. 1989; 49: 397-407.

Putman KM, Blair R, Roberts R, et al.: Perspectives of faith-based relief providers on responding to the needs of evacuees following Hurricane Katrina. Traumatology. 2012; 18(4): 56-64.

Jenkins P: After the flood: Faith in diaspora. In: Weber L, Peek L (eds.): Displaced: Life in the Katrina Diaspora. Austin: University of Texas Press, 2012: 218-229.

Douglas TL: A Faith-Based Organization’s Engagement of an African American Community in Disaster Preparation. Minneapolis, MN: Walden University, 2018.

McGeehan KM, Baker CK: Religious narratives and their implications for disaster risk reduction. Disasters. 2017; 41(2): 258-281.

Abernethy AD, Grannum GD, Gordon CL, et al.: The pastors empowerment program: A resilience education intervention to prevent clergy burnout. Spiritual Clin Practice (Washington, DC). 2016; 3(3): 175-186.

Tracy SJ: Qualitative Research Methods. 2nd ed. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Blackwell, 2020.

Glaser BG, Strauss AL: The Discovery of Grounded Theory. Chicago: Aldine, 1967.

Creswell JW, Creswell JD: Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2018.

US Census Bureau: QuickFacts—Katy city, Texas. Web Site. Updated. 2018. Available at https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/katycitytexas/PST045218. Accessed September 5, 2019.

Watson KM, Harwell GR, Wallace DS, et al.: Characterization of Peak Streamflows and Flood Inundation of Selected Areas in Southeastern Texas and Southwestern Louisiana from the August to September 2017 Flood Resulting from Hurricane Harvey. Reston, VA: US Geological Survey, 2018.

Army Corp of Engineers: News release: Corps releases at addicks and barker dams to begin. Web site updated. 2017. Available at https://www.swg.usace.army.mil/DesktopModules/ArticleCS/Print.aspx?PortalId=26&ModuleId=5070&Article=1291369. Accessed June 30, 2022.

Wallace T, Watkins D, Williams J, et al.: How a Houston suburb ended up in a reservoir. The New York Times. April 1, 2018.

Phillips BD: Qualitative Disaster Research. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.

Chung J, Davies N: A review of compassion fatigue of nurses during and after the Canterbury earthquakes. Australas J Disaster Trauma Stud. 2016; 20(2): 69-80.

Figley CR: Compassion Fatigue. London: Routledge, 1995.

Webb GR: The cultural turn in disaster research: Understanding resilience and vulnerability through the lens of culture. In: Handbook of Disaster Research. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2017: 109-121.

Weber M, Roth G, Wittich C: Economy and Society. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1978.

Penta S, Wachtendorf T, Nelan MM: Disaster relief as social action: A weberian look at post-disaster donation behavior. Sociol Forum. 2020; 35(1): 145-166.