IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/climat/v162y2020i4d10.1007_s10584-020-02796-1.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Coping strategies and trajectories of life satisfaction among households in a voluntary planned program of relocation from a flood-risk area

Author

Listed:
  • Sebastian Seebauer

    (JOANNEUM RESEARCH Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, LIFE – Institute for Climate, Energy and Society)

  • Claudia Winkler

    (JOANNEUM RESEARCH Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, LIFE – Institute for Climate, Energy and Society)

Abstract

Relocation from areas at risk is a highly effective, yet contested response to natural hazards. Affected households must deal with multiple long-term impacts on their livelihoods and communities. This study explores coping processes of households subjected to a voluntary home buyout scheme in the Danube floodplain in Austria. In a longitudinal study with three yearly waves of semi-structured qualitative interviews, 79 households were monitored over the decision-making, formation, implementation, and stabilization phases of the relocation process. Coping applies not just to those who leave but also to those who stay. Cognitive restructuring, opposition, problem solving, rumination, and escape/avoidance emerge as main coping strategies. These strategies take different characteristics depending on life circumstances and the phase of the relocation process. Most households follow a life satisfaction trajectory of resilience, recovery, or delayed recovery; they either maintain normal functioning or return to it within 5 years after announcement of the relocation program. The relocation stressor plays a minor role compared with family, job, health, and partnership, unless the relocation coincides with a personal crisis that already overstretches coping capacities. Few households exhibit a trajectory of chronic distress and remain deadlocked in social withdrawal or rumination of the lost former residence. Besides material impacts, households show a broad array of psychosocial reactions that need accounting for by cost-benefit assessments of relocation programs. Program managers should encourage positive coping strategies (e.g., support problem solving by formulation of early, structured and realistic plans) and discourage negative strategies (e.g., pre-empt opposition with citizen participation).

Suggested Citation

  • Sebastian Seebauer & Claudia Winkler, 2020. "Coping strategies and trajectories of life satisfaction among households in a voluntary planned program of relocation from a flood-risk area," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 162(4), pages 2219-2239, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:climat:v:162:y:2020:i:4:d:10.1007_s10584-020-02796-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s10584-020-02796-1
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10584-020-02796-1
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10584-020-02796-1?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sherri Brokopp Binder & Alex Greer, 2016. "The Devil Is in the Details: Linking Home Buyout Policy, Practice, and Experience After Hurricane Sandy," Politics and Governance, Cogitatio Press, vol. 4(4), pages 97-106.
    2. Miyuki Hino & Christopher B. Field & Katharine J. Mach, 2017. "Managed retreat as a response to natural hazard risk," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 7(5), pages 364-370, May.
    3. Juan Xi & Sean-Shong Hwang, 2011. "Relocation Stress, Coping, and Sense of Control Among Resettlers Resulting from China’s Three Gorges Dam Project," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 104(3), pages 507-522, December.
    4. Bishawjit Mallick & Joachim Vogt, 2014. "Population displacement after cyclone and its consequences: empirical evidence from coastal Bangladesh," 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. 73(2), pages 191-212, September.
    5. Christopher McDowell, 2013. "Climate-Change Adaptation and Mitigation: Implications for Land Acquisition and Population Relocation," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 31(6), pages 677-695, November.
    6. A. R. Siders, 2019. "Social justice implications of US managed retreat buyout programs," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 152(2), pages 239-257, January.
    7. Tony Matthews & Ruth Potts, 2018. "Planning for climigration: a framework for effective action," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 148(4), pages 607-621, June.
    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. 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.
    2. Guo, Wei & Liao, Yanjun (Penny) & Miao, Qing, 2023. "Managed Retreat and Flood Recovery: The Local Economic Impacts of a Buyout and Acquisition Program," RFF Working Paper Series 23-44, Resources for the Future.
    3. Anna Marandi & Kelly Leilani Main, 2021. "Vulnerable City, recipient city, or climate destination? Towards a typology of domestic climate migration impacts in US cities," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 465-480, September.
    4. Linda Shi & Anjali Fisher & Rebecca M. Brenner & Amelia Greiner-Safi & Christine Shepard & Jamie Vanucchi, 2022. "Equitable buyouts? Learning from state, county, and local floodplain management programs," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 174(3), pages 1-20, October.
    5. Tubridy, Fiadh & Lennon, Mick & Scott, Mark, 2022. "Managed retreat and coastal climate change adaptation: The environmental justice implications and value of a coproduction approach," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    6. Thomas Thaler, 2021. "Just retreat—how different countries deal with it: examples from Austria and England," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 412-419, September.
    7. Fallon S. Aidoo, 2021. "Architectures of mis/managed retreat: Black land loss to green housing gains," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 451-464, September.
    8. Geronimo Gussmann & Jochen Hinkel, 2020. "What drives relocation policies in the Maldives?," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 163(2), pages 931-951, November.
    9. Vicki M. Bier & Yuqun Zhou & Hongru Du, 2020. "Game-theoretic modeling of pre-disaster relocation," The Engineering Economist, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 65(2), pages 89-113, April.
    10. Julia Cardwell, 2023. "Community perceptions of a floodplain buyout program in Charlotte, North Carolina," 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. 115(3), pages 2141-2160, February.
    11. Jessica R. Z. Simms & Helen L. Waller & Chris Brunet & Pamela Jenkins, 2021. "The long goodbye on a disappearing, ancestral island: a just retreat from Isle de Jean Charles," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 316-328, September.
    12. Jonas Bergmann, 2021. "Planned relocation in Peru: advancing from well-meant legislation to good practice," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 365-375, September.
    13. Andrew G. Keeler & Megan Mullin & Dylan E. McNamara & Martin D. Smith, 2022. "Buyouts with rentbacks: a policy proposal for managing coastal retreat," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 12(3), pages 646-651, September.
    14. Eakin, Hallie & Keele, Svenja & Lueck, Vanessa, 2022. "Uncomfortable knowledge: Mechanisms of urban development in adaptation governance," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    15. Liz Koslov & Alexis Merdjanoff & Elana Sulakshana & Eric Klinenberg, 2021. "When rebuilding no longer means recovery: the stress of staying put after Hurricane Sandy," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 165(3), pages 1-21, April.
    16. Caroline M. Kraan & Miyuki Hino & Jennifer Niemann & A. R. Siders & Katharine J. Mach, 2021. "Promoting equity in retreat through voluntary property buyout programs," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 11(3), pages 481-492, September.
    17. Kelsea B. Best & Jonathan M. Gilligan & Hiba Baroud & Amanda R. Carrico & Katharine M. Donato & Brooke A. Ackerly & Bishawjit Mallick, 2021. "Random forest analysis of two household surveys can identify important predictors of migration in Bangladesh," Journal of Computational Social Science, Springer, vol. 4(1), pages 77-100, May.
    18. Hashida, Yukiko & Dundas, Steven J., 2023. "The effects of a voluntary property buyout and acquisition program on coastal housing markets: Evidence from New York," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    19. Kate Burrows & Ji-Young Son & Michelle L. Bell, 2021. "Do Socioeconomic Factors Influence Who Is Most Likely to Relocate after Environmental Disasters? A Case Study in Indonesia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-13, June.
    20. Curran-Groome, William & Hino, Miyuki & BenDor, Todd K. & Salvesen, David, 2022. "Complexities and costs of floodplain buyout implementation," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).

    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:spr:climat:v:162:y:2020:i:4:d:10.1007_s10584-020-02796-1. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.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.