Catastrophes are usually seen as a threat to a country’s stability and progress. Some countries are regarded as prepared to face them and ready to deal with the consequences, but still, a disaster is always presented at the very least as an inconvenience. Contrary to this line of thinking, this dissertation shows that catastrophes can present an opportunity for state-building. Catastrophes, and the profound sense of insecurity they cause, force institutions to demonstrate their adeptness, or change. Specifically, catastrophes challenge state power because they test its basic role as protector from physical harm. Consequently, when disaster happens the state is put to the test. States that arise triumphant from this challenge may use the opportunity to increase its strength and develop new capacities.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Mississippi State University. Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

This dissertation presents an analysis of the models of psychosocial processes structuring UNICEF’s psychosocial intervention after the emergency caused by the floods in Venezuela during 1999, and some of their political and ethical implications. I discuss how UNICEF’s intervention in the shelter of Fuerte Tiuna, in Caracas, provides a context in which discourses and practices construct the disaster as an event of a particular type, affording particular positions to those affected by it, and presenting the intervention as a reparative response that engages in different ways with these constructions. Specific issues explored by this dissertation include how practices and discourses construct the disaster and its impact on persons and communities; the nature of the psychosocial intervention; the subject; and the different forms of expertise involved in the intervention. Further, it examines how the intervention-as-designed is implemented and how the actual contact with the beneficiary population generates changes not only in the implementation itself, but also in the conceptual frameworks displayed by UNICEF. The analysis presents UNICEF’s psychosocial intervention as a practice that is simultaneously material and discursive. The participation of experts, the use of specific resources, the deployment of techniques and their devices, the organisation of time and space within the intervention, can all be considered as supporting certain notions of the disaster, its impact and its solution, which organise the models of the psychosocial. The main issues that appear as relevant for the analysis are related to the way in which the intervention constructs the disaster as a psychosocial problem; the appeal to the notion of trauma to explain the impact on those affected; the disciplinary, ethical and political implications of the different forms of understanding suffering in the Venezuelan contemporary context and how the notions put forward by UNICEF’s intervention engage with the social dynamics in Venezuela, in particular with the processes associated with the social and political polarisation.

The three largest storms in Sweden in modern time (1954, 1969 and 2005) are in focus in this thesis. By doing a narrative analysis of the countries four leading newspapers, the aim is to find out what stories are constructed during and after big crises such as storms. And more specifically what those narratives say about Sweden, being looked at in a historical rearview window. The result shows that the people of Sweden are portrayed as gender conservatives and that they are all ethnic swedes. There are no room for immigrants in the narratives. The narrative concerning every storm differs though, depending how the inhabitants act. In 1954 Sweden is portraited as a nation where everybody do things together and helps out. During the storm 1969 ordinary peoples efforts are no longer requested. The state promises to take care of everything. When it can´t keep its promises voices from the media and the government are requesting an even stronger state. But in 2005 there have been an era of liberalisation and deregulation. Private companies are now in charge of the electric power supply. After the storm the power is out in many places and people behave differently. Some are passive and demands that the electricity works, other are doing the best of the situation. People are more active on the countryside than in the cities. All are however blaming the electricity companies. But what we see is a more fragmented country than before, where the biggest victims are the small foresters who in many cases have lost everything, they own. They were victims even in the earlier storms, but in 1969, when Sweden, in many ways, was a world leading country the foresters’ stories were not to be heard. In 2005 the forest farmers story are once again told, they who loses everything and, in some cases, commit suicide. They stand as reminders of the old and very poor Sweden, an outskirt in the world. This narrative can have its explanation in the assumption that when the times are uncertain, or changing, a nation looks at its history.

Africa is home to more than 40% of the world’s population of internally displaced persons (IDPs).4 IDPs, according to the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement5, are persons or groups of persons who have been forced to leave their homes or places of habitual residence as a result of – or in order to avoid the effects of – armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights, natural disasters or human-made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognised state border. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2010. / A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Law University of Pretoria, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Law (LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa). Prepared under the supervision of Mr. S Tindifa at the Faculty of Law, Makerere University, Uganda. 2010. / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/ / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(地域研究) / 甲第25414号 / 地博第332号 / 新制||地||130(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院アジア・アフリカ地域研究研究科アフリカ地域研究専攻 / (主査)准教授 金子 守恵, 教授 大山 修一, 准教授 原田 英典, 教授 高田 明 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Area Studies / Kyoto University / DGAM

Nos sociétés actuelles sont fortement exposées aux risques de catastrophes qu’ils soient d’origine naturelle ou humaine. Le problème des risques majeurs évolue dans le temps, les facteurs favorisant cette évolution sont nombreux : ils peuvent être d’ordre environnemental, technologique, démographique ou socio-économique.La vulnérabilité des pays en voie de développement aux risques de catastrophes est beaucoup plus importante. Cette situation s’explique par plusieurs facteurs dont notamment la qualité de l’infrastructure susceptible d’être touchée, l’absence d’une cartographie de risques qui a pour conséquence directe la construction dans des zones fortement exposées aux catastrophes, l’absence de mesures de prévention, l’absence de politique de financement et de reconstruction des catastrophes. Ceci-dit une conscience est entrain de se développer dans ces régions. Le Maroc figure parmi les pays qui sont très vulnérables aux risques majeurs et c’est pour cela que le gouvernement marocain, avec le concours de la Banque Mondiale et de la coopération Suisse, a décidé de mettre en place une stratégie nationale de gestion intégrée des catastrophes qui comprend un volet indemnisation post-catastrophes inspiré du « régime Cat Nat » français. En effet les assureurs marocains se verront obliger de couvrir les risques catastrophiques par des garanties obligatoires adossées à certains contrats d’assurance.Ce travail propose ainsi d’analyser d’un point de vue opérationnel les différents aspects juridiques de la gestion des risques majeurs : la prévention et le financement des catastrophes. / Our societies are becoming increasingly exposed to the risks of natural or human disasters. Major risks change over time, the factors affecting these changes are diverse and can be environmental, technological, demographic or socio-economic. The vulnerability of developing countries to catastrophic risk is much higher than that of developed nations. This can be explained by several factors, including the quality of infrastructure likely to be affected, the lack of a risk mapping that has the direct consequence of construction in areas highly exposed to disasters, the absence of preventive measures, and the lack of funding and reconstruction policies. That being said, there is growing awareness around these areas.Morocco is among the countries that are highly vulnerable to major risks and that is why the Moroccan government, with the assistance of the World Bank and the Swiss Cooperation has decided to implement a national strategy for integrated management of disasters which includes a post-disaster compensation component based on the French "Cat Nat Plan". Therefore, Moroccan insurers will be required to cover catastrophic risks through mandatory coverage backed by certain insurance contracts.This work proposes to analyze from an operational point of view the various legal aspects of major risks management: prevention and disaster funding.

Women as a group hold little power in the social system which increases women's vulnerability to domestic violence. According to Merton (1970), social problems may be revealed through the disaster recovery process. A coraHunity1s organizational response to social problems such as wife abuse depends upon organizational members' perceptions. The data suggest that organizational perceptions of domestic violence largely depend upon the setting or environment in which an organization exists and operates. A second factor that greatly determines an organization's perception of domestic violence after disaster is organizational type. Organizations which provide services to domestic violence victims pre-disaster are more likely to perceive domestic violence following disaster than organizations which do not provide domestic violence related services prior to disaster.

Although most research has focused on adults, studies indicate that children also experience detrimental psychological effects as the result of natural disasters. The purpose of the present study was to determine if the tornado which struck Wichita Falls,, Texas, on April 10, 1979, had any negative effects on the academic performance or social behavior of school children. Three groups of students were studied: (a) victims of the tornado who suffered a significant loss, (b) observers of the disaster who did not suffer a significant loss, and (c) newcomers who arrived after the disaster. Achievement test scores, grades, and attendance over a 4-year period were studied. The overall results do not indicate significant differences among the three groups.

The following chapters report an exploratory study of reactions to two disasters, a tornado and floods, which struck Dallas, Texas, in the spring of 1957. Although the findings and discussion are presented in the context of a somewhat shortened version of the time sequence described above, the major emphasis is on the differential impact of the two types of disaster agents and on the reactions of victims to disaster situations.Two disasters had occurred in the Dallas area, both having a major effect upon Negro areas of residence in that city. Furthermore, a rapid, impressionistic survey of the two areas made by Doctor Harry E. Moore of the Department of Sociology of the University of Texas and Doctor H. J. Friedsam of the Department of Sociology of North Texas State University, suggested that the two areas were also homogeneous in income level and. possibly in other ways. 5 Hence, the situation presented an opportunity to study and compare the residents' reactions to two different disaster agents. More specifically, it was felt that an exploratory study to determine whether or not there was Qadifference in the responses of tho victims to the tornado and floods could be undertaken.