Planning for incidents involving mass decontamination has focused almost exclusively on technical aspects of decontamination, with little attempt to understand public experiences and behaviour. This thesis aimed to examine relevant theory and research, in order to understand public behaviour during incidents involving mass decontamination, and to develop theoretically-derived recommendations for emergency responders. As these incidents involve groups, it was expected that social identity processes would play an important role in public responses. A review of small-scale incidents involving decontamination is presented, along with a review of decontamination guidance documents for emergency responders. This literature shows that responder communication strategies play an important role in public experiences and behaviour, but that the importance of communication is not reflected in guidance documents. Theories of mass emergency behaviour, in particular the social identity approach, are reviewed, in order to generate hypotheses and recommendations for the management of incidents involving mass decontamination. It is hypothesised that effective responder communication will increase public compliance and cooperation, and reduce anxiety, mediated by social identity variables (e.g. perceptions of responder legitimacy, identification with emergency responders and other members of public, and collective agency). The empirical research presented in this thesis tests the hypotheses and recommendations derived from the social identity approach. The research includes: a responder interview study; three studies of volunteer feedback from field exercises; a visualisation experiment; and a mass decontamination field experiment. Findings show that effective responder communication consistently results in increased willingness to comply with decontamination, and increased public cooperation; this relationship is mediated by social identity variables. Results support the hypotheses, and show that an understanding of the social identity approach facilitates the development of effective responder communication strategies for incidents involving mass decontamination. Four theoretically-derived, and evidence-based, recommendations for emergency responders are generated as a result of this thesis.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-28T20:38:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Luiz Antonio Manzochi.pdf: 510688 bytes, checksum: 7693cc5bd5779875d4cec40006425d3c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-04-04 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / This study had the objective to contribute to improving the professional qualification of invisible emergency workers, as well as to prepare an Occupational Health Program for these professionals, with the aim to ensure their physical and mental health. Invisible emergency professionals are those work actively in emergency situations but not directly with the care of people, and for that reason, do not receive specific training on emergency work. A qualitative research with purposeful sample was carried out. Five professionals answered semi-structured interviews: a daily print media journalist, an ambulance driver, an emergency department receptionist, a forensic photographer, and a psychosocial care volunteer. The content of the interviews was analyzed and organized into categories based on the literature, especially on the concepts of Psychology of Emergency, Social Psychology (identity), and Organizational Psychology (training and qualification), with the aim to raise knowledge on the phenomenon studied. It was possible to observe the lack of preparation and specific training of the invisible professionals working in emergencies. The structure of the occupational health care is ineffective and stigmatizes professionals who need psychological or psychiatric care. The training, development and education area does not promote trainings that address the real needs of the professionals. Emotional and psychosomatic disorders cause changes in the relationship and behavioral patterns of these employees. The study suggests action and management strategies that could change this reality, providing enough space for the professionals to perform their functions effectively, preserving their physical and mental health / Este estudo teve como objetivo inicial contribuir para melhoria na qualificação profissional do trabalhador invisível que atua nas emergências, assim como na elaboração de Programa de Atenção à Saúde do trabalhador para esses profissionais, buscando garantir sua saúde física e mental. Profissionais invisíveis das emergências são aqueles que atuam de forma ativa na emergência, mas não diretamente na assistência e, por este motivo, não recebem treinamento específico sobre trabalho nas emergências. Trata-se de uma pesquisa qualitativa com amostra proposital. Foram entrevistados por meio de entrevista semiestruturada cinco profissionais: uma jornalista de cotidiano de mídia impressa, um motorista de ambulância, uma recepcionista de pronto socorro hospitalar, um fotógrafo da polícia científica e uma voluntária de atenção psicossocial. O conteúdo das entrevistas foi analisado e organizado em categorias construídas com base na literatura, sobretudo em conceitos da Psicologia das Emergências, Psicologia Social (identidade) e Psicologia organizacional e do Trabalho (treinamento e capacitação), com o intuito de agregar conhecimentos que auxiliassem na compreensão do fenômeno estudado. Foi possível observar o despreparo e falta de treinamento específico para atuar em emergências que afetam os profissionais invisíveis. A estrutura do serviço de atenção à saúde do trabalhador não é efetiva e contribui para estigmatizar o profissional que precise de atendimento psicológico ou psiquiátrico. A área de treinamento, desenvolvimento e educação não realiza treinamentos que contemplem a real necessidade dos profissionais. Transtornos emocionais e psicossomáticos levam o profissional a apresentar mudanças de padrão de relacionamento e comportamento. O estudo sugere estratégias de atuação e manejo que possam mudar esta realidade, propiciando espaço adequado para o profissional desempenhar suas funções de forma efetiva e preservando sua saúde física e mental