Date of Award
2021
Document Type
Thesis
Publication Status
Version of Record
Submission Date
October 2026
Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]
Polsky, Colin
Abstract
As flood risk rises in the U.S., technology and insights rise too, but even with these advances we still see the consequences of flood risk. Together, the rational actor paradigm (“RAP”), psychometrics, and cultural theory help to explain risk perceptions and behaviors of 20 respondents. Results from the mixed-methods approach found the RAP insufficient, less accurate than a coin toss (48%), when explaining respondent behaviors. Rather, risk perceptions and behaviors of the RAP explain the behaviors of lower risk portrayal groups (66%) and higher income groups (80%), with higher risk portrayals being relying on respondents’ trust in flood experts (45%) and cultural worldviews (55%). Cultural identities explain 65% of respondents’ behaviors across levels of risk portrayal (500-, 100-, and 25-year floodplain), and risk portrayal types (cumulative and AAL). In a world with increased risk, technology, and knowledge, researchers need understand the explanatory power of the RAP, psychometrics, and cultural theory.
Extent
243 p.
Recommended Citation
Oglesby, Glen E., "It’s all just in your head: How does a person’s cultural identity affect their flood risk perceptions and mitigation behaviors?" (2021). Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2020 - Present. 761.
https://digitalcommons.fau.edu/etd_general/761
Identifier
FA00013760
Comments
Includes bibliography.|Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2021.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.