This research adds greater dimensions to the understanding of the
recovery-aid acquisition process for households in rural communities
with a racially heterogeneous and contentious population. The study
population is divided into three categories based on ethnicity: Anglo,
African-American, and Hispanic. The disaster-recovery process assessed
if variations exist the disaster-aid acquisition process of households
which correlate with ethnicity. During the investigation, researchers
examined if the sources of disaster-aid a household was able to acquire
was influenced by ethnicity. Relationships along ethnic lines were also
examined in the types of aid acquired by the various groups. These
measurements were undertaken to see if different paths to housing recovery resulted in differential rates of recovery. The societal context in
which these processes took place has also been considered to establish if
it affected the speed and efficiency of the recovery process.
This research has helped identify some common problems faced in
the disaster-recovery process by resource strapped communities, which
also lack the ability to effectively engage vertical and horizontal ties to
promote speedy and equitable recovery after a major natural disaster.
Results indicate that ethnicity plays a significant role in the disaster-aid
acquisition process, but one that varies from expectations developed
through a review of previous literature on this subject. These finding
may be an indication that the ethnic variations examined in this casestudy
are an artifact of social-status and social-integration more so than
because of any cultural construct of a particular ethnic group. The
overreaching implications of this study show, however, that ethnicity is
an important variable in determining the process and availability of
major sources of recovery aid in the housing recovery process,
particularly in a rural community.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/ETD-TAMU-1969 |
| Date | 02 June 2009 |
| Creators | Galindo, Kim Blanca |
| Contributors | Peacock, Walter Gillis, Wenger, Dennis E. |
| Source Sets | Texas A and M University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, Thesis, Electronic Dissertation, text |
| Format | electronic, application/pdf, born digital |
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