Incorporating Measures of Community in Wildland Fire Preparedness Education
Location
Forestry Room 127
Event Website
http://uenr.warnercnr.colostate.edu
Start Date
3-24-2012 2:45 PM
End Date
3-24-2012 3:15 PM
Description
Using data from a survey of Colorado residents, we examined measures of sense of community (SOC). Respondents were asked to rate fifteen items measuring SOC on a 7-point scale, where 1 = strongly disagree and 7 = strongly agree. McMillan and Chavis (1986) suggest that these items form four dimensions of SOC: membership, influence, reinforcement of needs, and shared emotional connection. The four dimensions of SOC were supported by the data (i.e., Cronbach’s alpha > .80 for all four dimensions). A cluster analysis of the four dimensions of SOC identified three distinct segments of individuals. The first cluster indicated that they felt a strong SOC on all four dimensions. The second cluster felt a more neutral SOC, while the third cluster felt a low SOC on all four dimensions. We hypothesize that individuals with a low SOC will not be as likely to adopt wildfire protection (i.e., defensible space) behaviors. Understanding these segments can help inform future wildland fire educational materials.
Incorporating Measures of Community in Wildland Fire Preparedness Education
Forestry Room 127
Using data from a survey of Colorado residents, we examined measures of sense of community (SOC). Respondents were asked to rate fifteen items measuring SOC on a 7-point scale, where 1 = strongly disagree and 7 = strongly agree. McMillan and Chavis (1986) suggest that these items form four dimensions of SOC: membership, influence, reinforcement of needs, and shared emotional connection. The four dimensions of SOC were supported by the data (i.e., Cronbach’s alpha > .80 for all four dimensions). A cluster analysis of the four dimensions of SOC identified three distinct segments of individuals. The first cluster indicated that they felt a strong SOC on all four dimensions. The second cluster felt a more neutral SOC, while the third cluster felt a low SOC on all four dimensions. We hypothesize that individuals with a low SOC will not be as likely to adopt wildfire protection (i.e., defensible space) behaviors. Understanding these segments can help inform future wildland fire educational materials.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cuenr/9thBiennial/Sessions/54
Comments
Citation: Vaske, JJ, Absher, JD, Lyon, KM. 2012. Incorporating Measures of Community in Wildland Fire Preparedness Education. 9th UENR Biennial Conference. UENR 9th Biennial Conference. http://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cuenr/9thBiennial/Sessions/54/