Risk perception and awareness of earthquake: the case of Dhaka

Abstract

Purpose

Among the many studies about risk perception, only a few deal with Bangladesh. Paul and Bhuiyan’s (2010) study has shown the earthquake-preparedness level of residents of Dhaka, but there are some biases in the data collection. This paper aims to examine the seismic-risk perception and the level of knowledge on earthquake and preparedness among the residents of Dhaka.

Design/methodology/approach

A questionnaire was developed, and data collection was undertaken through home and sidewalk surveys. This paper investigates how attitude, perception and behavior differ depending on gender, age, education and casualty awareness. This research tries to examine and make a comparison of the risk perception and preparedness level between different groups of gender, age and level of education.

Findings

This research shows that female respondents have a much better risk perception of and are better prepared for earthquakes than male respondents; younger people have a higher knowledge about earthquake preparedness than older people and less-educated people are at a higher risk of unpreparedness than more-educated people.

Research limitations/implications

This research is only limited to the Dhaka Division.

Originality/value

This paper concludes by noting that public awareness on seismic-risk perception and mitigation is poor, and their knowledge on basic theory and emergency response must be improved.

Citation

Rahman, M.L. (2020), "Risk perception and awareness of earthquake: the case of Dhaka", International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment, Vol. 10 No. 1, pp. 65-82. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJDRBE-04-2018-0020