IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i15p8189-d607138.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Rocks, Dandelions or Steel Springs: Understanding Resilience from a Public Health Perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Karl Gauffin

    (Department of Public Health Sciences, Stockholm University, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden)

  • Josephine Jackisch

    (Department of Public Health Sciences, Stockholm University, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden)

  • Ylva B. Almquist

    (Department of Public Health Sciences, Stockholm University, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden)

Abstract

The multifaceted concept of resilience is widely used to describe individual or societal abilities to withstand and adjust to external pressures. In relation to health, resilience can help us to understand a positive health development despite adverse circumstances. The authors of this article aimed to disentangle this complex concept by elaborating on three metaphors commonly used to describe resilience. Similarities and differences between resilience as a rock, a dandelion, and a steel spring are discussed. The metaphors partly overlap but still provide slightly different perspectives on the development and manifestation of resilience. With reference to longitudinal studies of long-term health development, the article also elaborates on how resilience relates to temporal dimensions commonly used in epidemiological studies: age, cohort, and period. Moreover, the interaction between resilience at individual, organizational, and societal levels is discussed. In conclusion, it is argued that public health sciences have great potential to further a theoretical discussion that improves our understanding of resilience and promotes the integration of individual- and community-level perspectives on resilience.

Suggested Citation

  • Karl Gauffin & Josephine Jackisch & Ylva B. Almquist, 2021. "Rocks, Dandelions or Steel Springs: Understanding Resilience from a Public Health Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-8, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:15:p:8189-:d:607138
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/15/8189/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/15/8189/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Morton, M.J. & Lurie, N., 2013. "Community resilience and public health practice," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 103(7), pages 1158-1160.
    2. S. Nazrul Islam & John Winkel, 2017. "Climate Change and Social Inequality," Working Papers 152, United Nations, Department of Economics and Social Affairs.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Majumder, Suman & De, Krishnarti & Kumar, Praveen & Sengupta, Bodhisattva & Biswas, Pabitra Kumar, 2021. "Techno-commercial analysis of sustainable E-bus-based public transit systems: An Indian case study," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    2. Mali‘o Kodis & Marci Bortman & Sarah Newkirk, 2021. "Strategic retreat for resilient and equitable climate adaptation: the roles for conservation organizations," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 493-502, September.
    3. Brad Bottoms & Julie Arbit & Earl Lewis & Alford Young Jr, 2024. "Towards urban place-based resilience modeling: Mixed methods for a flood resilience assessment index," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 51(7), pages 1563-1580, September.
    4. Mumtaz, Haroon & Theophilopoulou, Angeliki, 2024. "The distributional effects of climate change. An empirical analysis," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    5. Rodrigo Pérez-Silva & Mayarí Castillo & Chiara Cazzuffi, 2023. "Droughts and Local Labor Markets. Studying Heterogenous Effects on Women and Indigenous People in Chile," Economics of Disasters and Climate Change, Springer, vol. 7(2), pages 281-302, July.
    6. Sinha, Avik & Shah, Muhammad Ibrahim & Mehta, Atul & Sharma, Rajesh, 2022. "Impact of Energy Innovation on Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Moderation of Regional Integration and Social Inequality in Asian Economies," ADBI Working Papers 1304, Asian Development Bank Institute.
    7. Alan Kirschenbaum, 2021. "Reducing patient surge: community based social networks as first responders," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 108(1), pages 163-175, August.
    8. Hélène Benveniste & Michael Oppenheimer & Marc Fleurbaey, 2022. "Climate change increases resource-constrained international immobility," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 12(7), pages 634-641, July.
    9. Męczyński Michał & Ciesiółka Przemysław, 2022. "Regional Green Transition: Cases of Polish and Russian Regions," Quaestiones Geographicae, Sciendo, vol. 41(4), pages 165-177, December.
    10. Eszter Baranyai & Ádám Banai, 2022. "Heat projections and mortgage characteristics: evidence from the USA," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 175(3), pages 1-20, December.
    11. Lawrence A. Palinkas & Benjamin F. Springgate & Olivia K. Sugarman & Jill Hancock & Ashley Wennerstrom & Catherine Haywood & Diana Meyers & Arthur Johnson & Mara Polk & Carter L. Pesson & Jessica E. S, 2021. "A Rapid Assessment of Disaster Preparedness Needs and Resources during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-21, January.
    12. Gemma Hayward & Sonja Ayeb-Karlsson, 2021. "‘Seeing with Empty Eyes’: a systems approach to understand climate change and mental health in Bangladesh," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 165(1), pages 1-30, March.
    13. Holly S. Embke & Abigail J. Lynch & T. Douglas Beard, 2024. "Supporting climate adaptation for rural Mekong River Basin communities in Thailand," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 29(7), pages 1-29, October.
    14. Jimena García-Burgos & Yosune Miquelajauregui & Elizabeth Vega & Anil Namdeo & Alejandro Ruíz-Olivares & Juan Manuel Mejía-Arangure & Cinthia Gabriela Resendiz-Martinez & Louise Hayes & Lindsay Bramwe, 2022. "Exploring the Spatial Distribution of Air Pollution and Its Association with Socioeconomic Status Indicators in Mexico City," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-22, November.
    15. Ali Adil, 2024. "Differentiated grassroots: Navigating sustainability transitions in conservative political contexts," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 61(8), pages 1508-1525, June.
    16. Odeya Cohen & Stav Shapira & Limor Aharonson-Daniel & Judith Shamian, 2019. "Confidence in Health-Services Availability during Disasters and Emergency Situations—Does it Matter?—Lessons Learned from an Israeli Population Survey," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-12, September.
    17. Jorge Moya & María Goenechea, 2022. "An Approach to the Unified Conceptualization, Definition, and Characterization of Social Resilience," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-15, May.
    18. Mongelli, Francesco Paolo & Pointner, Wolfgang & van den End, Jan Willem, 2022. "The effects of climate change on the natural rate of interest: a critical survey," Working Paper Series 2744, European Central Bank.
    19. Tripathi, Sabyasachi, 2019. "Effect of Disasters and Climate Change on Poverty and Inequality in India," MPRA Paper 94132, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    20. Shannon Audley & Julia L. Ginsburg & Cami Furlong, 2024. "“We Don’t Always Have to Be Talking about It”: Moral Reasoning in US Early Childhood Education for Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-22, September.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:15:p:8189-:d:607138. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.