Date of Award
5-2008
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Degree Program
Sociology
Department
Sociology
Major Professor
Laska, Shirley
Second Advisor
Adeola, Francis
Third Advisor
Baxter, Vern
Abstract
South Louisiana regularly experiences effects from flooding. This study looks at what homeowners are doing to reduce their losses from floods through the practices of flood mitigation. I developed four hypotheses to predict homeowners' mitigation behavior. (1) Homeowners with a history of flooding are likely to mitigate more than those without previous flooding. (2) High-disposable-income homeowners are more likely to mitigate than lowdisposable- income homeowners. (3) The stronger the place attachment among homeowners, the higher the likelihood they will mitigate. (4) Homeowners who have experienced effective mitigation measures in the past are more likely to mitigate than those who have not. To test these hypotheses, a survey was administered in five different neighborhoods throughout Orleans and Jefferson parishes having high concentrations of repeatedly flooded homes. The findings suggest severity of past flooding, disposable savings, strong relationships with neighbors, and discussion of flooding with neighbors are the strongest predictors of flood mitigation.
Recommended Citation
Olivier, Maggie L., "Testing the Waters: The Social Contexts of Homeowner Flood Mitigation" (2008). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 687.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/687
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.