Positive Coping and Community Resilience in Disaster Management for Flooding in Malaysia
Hana W. Jun Chen 1,*, Roy Rillera Marzo 2, Mila Nu Nu Htay 3, Sakina Ruhi 1,*, Sarah Mohd Zainal Abidin 1, Allistair Adam Nelson 1, Haryati Anuar 1, Jegathambigai Rameshwar Naidu 1, Irma Muslimin 4, Andi Salim 5
Journal of Angiotherapy 8(2) 1-10 https://doi.org/10.25163/angiotherapy.829464
Submitted: 25 December 2023 Revised: 26 February 2024 Published: 28 February 2024
Recognizing the significance of coping mechanisms in fostering community resilience is essential for reducing the effects of flooding and enhancing health risks and disaster preparedness in Malaysia.
Abstract
Background: Flood disasters increase the risk of both direct health impacts like trauma, injuries, and infectious diseases, as well as indirect impacts such as displacement-related and mental health problems. Disasters, though devastating, can have their adverse effects mitigated. A pivotal aspect in disaster management is community resilience, which is instrumental for sustainable recovery and growth. Individuals' readiness to take preparedness measures that increase community resilience might be influenced by their coping mechanisms. This study assessed the association between positive coping and community resilience among affected communities in Shah Alam, Malaysia. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study and recruited participants by using purposive sampling. The participants were required to self-report their sociodemographic profile, coping, and community resilience. Coping was assessed using the Brief-Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced scale, and community resilience was assessed using the Communities Advancing Resilience Toolkit survey. Multivariable logistic regression was performed. Results: The findings demonstrated that problem-focused coping was the strongest predictor for community resilience in all domains. Participants with low problem- and emotion-focused coping were associated with low community resilience. Conclusion: A strong sense of social responsibility fosters more resilient communities. It is imperative to craft holistic community health programs, embedding both social responsibility and resilience, to proactively mitigate and manage disaster risks. As such, the adoption of comprehensive community resilience frameworks should be prioritized within health and disaster management blueprints.
Keywords: Health Risks, Community resilience; Coping strategies; Disaster risk management; Flood; Sustainable community
References
Abdalqader, M., Shebl, H., Ghazi, H., Baobaid, M. F., Wei Jun, H. C., Hasan , T. N., et al. (2020). The facts about corona virus disease (COVID-19): The current scenario and important lessons. Global Journal of Public Health Medicine, 2(SP1), 168–178. doi:10.37557/gjphm.v2iSP1.48
Abdalqader, M., Baobaid, M. F., Ghazi, H. F., Hasan, T. N., Mohammed, M. F., Abdalrazak, H. A., et al. (2020). The Malaysian Movement Control Order (MCO) impact and its relationship with practices towards coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) among a private university students in Selangor. Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine, 20(2), 49–55. doi:10.37268/mjphm/vol.20/no.2/art.523
Akhir, N. M., Aun, N. S. M., Selamat, M. N., & Amin, A. S. (2021). Exploring factors influencing resilience among flood victims in Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 11(6), 969–981.
Carter, P. L., & Nicolaides, A. (2023). Transformative learning: An emotional (r)evolution. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 2023(177), 25-36. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.20476
Carver, C. S. (1997). You want to measure coping but your protocol's too long: Consider the brief COPE. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 4, 92-100. doi:10.1207/s15327558ijbm0401_6
Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Weintraub, J. K. (1989). Assessing coping strategies: A theoretically based approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56(2), 267-283. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.56.2.267
Center for Excellence in Disaster Management & Humanitarian Assistance. (2022). Malaysia Disaster Management Reference Handbook.
Chong, N. O., Kamarudin, K. H., & Abd Wahid, S. N. (2018). Framework Considerations for Community Resilient Towards Disaster in Malaysia. Procedia Engineering, 212, 165-172. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2018.01.022
Dhand, N. K., & Khatkar, M. S. (2014). Statulator: An online statistical calculator. Sample size calculator for estimating a single mean. Accessed 14 January 2023 at http://statulator.com/SampleSize/ss1M.html
Drzewiecki, D. M., Wavering, H. M., Milbrath, G. R., Freeman, V. L., & Lin, J. Y. (2020). The association between educational attainment and resilience to natural hazard-induced disasters in the West Indies: St. Kitts & Nevis. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 47, 101637. doi:10.1016/j.ijdrr.2020.101637
French, C. E., Waite, T. D., Armstrong, B., Rubin, G. J., English National Study of Flooding and Health Study Group, Beck, C. R., & Oliver, I. (2019). Impact of repeat flooding on mental health and health-related quality of life: a cross-sectional analysis of the English National Study of Flooding and Health. BMJ open, 9(11), e031562. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2019-031562
Ghazi, H. F., Abdalqader, M., Baobaid, M. F., Hasan, T. N., Mohammed, M. F., Shebl, H. A., et al. (2020). Knowledge regarding Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) among medical students at a private university in Shah Alam, Malaysia. Global Journal of Public Health Medicine, 2(SP1), 196–202. doi:10.37557/gjphm.v2iSP1.58
Gil-Rivas, V., & Kilmer, R. P. (2016). Building community capacity and fostering disaster resilience. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 72(12), 1318-1332.
Gooding, P. A., Hurst, A., Johnson, J., & Tarrier, N. (2012). Psychological resilience in young and older adults. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 27(3), 262-270. doi:10.1002/gps.2712
International Federation of Red Cross And Red Crescent Societies. (2022). Malaysia: Flash Floods - DREF Operation N° MDRMY008 - Final Report.
Irasanti, S. N., Respati, T., Januarita, R., Yuniarti, Y., Chen, H. W. J., & Marzo, R. R. (2023). Domain and perception on community resilience: Comparison between two countries. Frontiers in Public Health, 11, 1157837. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1157837
J. Sambu L, & Mhongo S. (2019). Age and Gender in Relation to Resilience After the Experience of Trauma among Internally Displaced Persons (IDPS) in Kiambaa Village, Eldoret East Sub-County, Kenya. JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY & BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE, 7(1). doi:10.15640/jpbs.v7n1a4
Jun Chen, H. W., Marzo, R. R., Tang, H. C., Mawazi, S. M., & Essar, M. Y. (2021). One mutation away, the potential zoonotic threat - Neocov, planetary health impacts and the call for sustainability. Journal of Public Health Research, 10(1 Suppl), jphr.2021.2941. doi: 10.4081/jphr.2021.2941
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1991). The Concept of Coping. In: Monat A, Lazarus R (ed.) Stress and Coping: an Anthology. New York Chichester, West Sussex: Columbia University Press. 189-206. doi:10.7312/mona92982-017
Liu, W. (2022). Disaster communication ecology in multiethnic communities: Understanding disaster coping and community resilience from a communication resource approach. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 15(1), 94-117.
Mah, A. Y., Chapman, D. A., Markowitz, E. M., & Lickel, B. (2020). Coping with climate change: Three insights for research, intervention, and communication to promote adaptive coping to climate change. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 75, 102282.
Marzo, R. R., Chen, H. W., Abid, K., Chauhan, S., Kaggwa, M. M., Essar, M. Y., Jayaram, J., Changmai, M. C., Wahab, M. K., Ariffin, I. A., Alwi, M. N., Head, M. G., & Lin, Y. (2022). Adapted digital health literacy and health information seeking behavior among lower income groups in Malaysia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in Public Health, 10, 998272. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2022.998272
Marzo, R. R., Jun Chen, H. W., Ahmad, A., Thew, H. Z., Choy, J. S., Ng, C. H., Chew, C. L. A., Heidler, P., King, I., Shrestha, R., Rahman, F., Rana, J. A., Khoshtaria, T., Matin, A., Todua, N., Bicer, B. K., Faller, E., Tudy, R. A., Baldonado, A., Penamante, C. A., Bahari, R., Younus, D. A., Ismail, Z. M., Lotfizadeh, M., … Elsayed, M. E. G. (2024). The evolving role of social media in enhancing quality of life: a global perspective across 10 countries. Arch Public Health, 82(28). doi:10.1186/s13690-023-01222-z
Md Akhir, N., Kamaluddin, M. R., Amin, A. S., Mohd., R. H., & Md Akhir, N. H. (2019). Exploring the coping strategies that improve resiliency among flood victims in Kelantan, Malaysia. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering, 8(2), S10. doi:10.35940/ijrte.B1010.0982S1019
Mohamad, N., Jusoh, H., & Ahmad, H. (2021). Indicators of urban community resilience in Putrajaya, Malaysia. e-BANGI: Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 18(SI) (2), 56-68. ISSN 1823-884x
Najimudeen, M., Chen, H. W. J., Jamaluddin, N. A., Myint, M. H., & Marzo, R. R. (2022). Monkeypox in pregnancy: Susceptibility, maternal and fetal outcomes, and One Health concept. International Journal of MCH and AIDS, 11(2), e594. doi:10.21106/ijma.594
Paterson, D. L., Wright, H., & Harris, P. N. (2018). Health risks of flood disasters. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 67(9), 1450-1454. doi:10.1093/cid/ciy227
Pfefferbaum, R. L., Pfefferbaum, B., Nitiéma, P., Houston, J. B., & Van Horn, R. L. (2015). Assessing Community Resilience: An Application of the Expanded CART Survey Instrument With Affiliated Volunteer Responders. American Behavioral Scientist, 59(2), 181–199. doi.10.1177/0002764214550295
Pfefferbaum, B., Van Horn, R. L., & Pfefferbaum, R. L. (2017). A conceptual framework to enhance community resilience using social capital. Clinical Social Work Journal, 45(2), 102-110.
Poulus, D., Coulter, T. J., Trotter, M. G., & Polman, R. (2020). Stress and coping in esports and the influence of mental toughness. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00628
Rimé, B. (2007). Interpersonal Emotion Regulation. In J. J. Gross (Ed.), Handbook of emotion regulation (pp. 466–485). The Guilford Press.
Skalski, S. B., Konaszewski, K., Büssing, A., & Surzykiewicz, J. (2022). Resilience and mental well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic: Serial mediation by persistent thinking and anxiety about coronavirus. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12, 810274. doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2021.810274
Touza, J., Lacambra, C., Kiss, A., Amboage, R. M., Sierra, P., Solan, M., Godbold, J. A., Spencer, T., & White, P. C. L. (2021). Coping and Adaptation in Response to Environmental and Climatic Stressors in Caribbean Coastal Communities. Environmental management, 68(4), 505–521. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-021-01500-y
World Health Organization. (2022). Epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention (EPP). Imagining the future of pandemics and epidemics: A 2022 perspective. Geneva: World Health Organization. License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.
Wut, M., & Lee, W. (2022). Role of Organizational Resilience and Psychological Resilience in the Workplace—Internal Stakeholder Perspective. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(18). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191811799
Yusoff, M. S. B. (2011). The validity of the Malay brief cope in identifying coping strategies among adolescents in secondary school. International Medical Journal, 18, 29–33.
View Dimensions
View Altmetric
Save
Citation
View
Share