STO. NIÑO COLLEGE OF ORMOC INC.

Doña Feliza Mejia Village

Ormoc City

Name: ___________________________ Strand: _______________________

KEY CONCEPTS OF DISASTER, HAZARD,

VULNERABILITY, AND CAPACITY
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At end of the Chapter I, the students are expected to:
1. Define key concepts of disaster, hazard, vulnerability, and capacity.
2. Explain the meaning of disaster risk and the occurrence of disaster.
3. Assess how hazards, vulnerability, and capacity relate to disaster.

THE CONCEPT OF VULNERABILITY

What is Vulnerability? What is the effect of vulnerability to disaster?

The concept of vulnerability comes from many aspects, specifically, those that arise from various social,
economic, physical, and environmental factors. Examples may include poor design and construction of buildings,
inadequate protection of assets and lack of public awareness, limited official recognition of risks and preparedness
measures, and disregard for wise environmental management (ODPM 2013). The Asian Disaster Preparedness
Center (2006, p.10) defines vulnerability as "a set of prevailing or consequential conditions, which adversely
affect the community's ability to prevent, mitigate, prepare for and respond to hazardous events." These long-term
factors affect a household or community's ability to absorb losses after disaster and to recover from damage.
Vulnerability is present in the community or society even before a disaster happens. It precedes disaster;
contribute to its severity, impede disaster response, and may continue to exist long after a disaster has struck.

Who are the so-called Most Vulnerable Sectors?

• They are the community members whose capacities are low and not sufficient to withstand and overcome
the damaging and adverse effects of disasters.
• They are composed of farmers, urban poor, laborers, indigenous people, persons with disabilities (PWDS),
women, and children.
• In addition, they are the so-called abused sector and at the lowest levels of the society.

Who are the so-called Less Vulnerable Sectors?

• They are the community members whose capacities start from their own ability to acquire material
resources; skills and trainings; and position in society.
• Their capacities are higher than those in the vulnerable sector to overcome the adverse effects of disasters.
• They are composed of professionals, small entrepreneurs, and others similar to those who belong to the
higher levels of society.
 • Their role in disaster management activities is to extend assistance and support to vulnerable sectors.
Who are the so-called Not Vulnerable Sectors?
• Sector in the society having high position in the community.
• Most of the time, they are the targets of the vulnerable and less vulnerable sectors in advocacy work
in relating disaster issue to the structure and policies implemented by the government that are the root
causes of vulnerability of the community.

CATEGORIES OF VULNERABILITIES
According to Anderson and Woodrow (1990) there are three areas of vulnerability, referring to the following:
• Physical/Material Vulnerability
For example, poor people who have few physical and material resources usually suffer more
from disasters than rich people. People who are poor often live on marginal lands; they don't have any
savings or insurance; they are in poor health. Their physical and material resources are miserable.
These factors make them more vulnerable to disasters meaning they have difficulty surviving and
recovering from a calamity than people who are better off economically.
✓ location and type of housing/building materials land, water, animals, capital, other means of
production (access and control)
✓ infrastructure and services: roads, health facilities, schools, electricity, communications,
transport, housing, etc.
✓ human capital: population, mortality, diseases, nutritional status, literacy, numeracy, poverty
levels
✓ environment factors: forestation, soil quality, and erosion

• Social/Organizational Vulnerability
People who have been marginalized in social, economic, or political terms are vulnerable to
suffering from disasters whereas groups, which are well-organized and have high commitment to their
members, suffer less during disasters. Weakness in social and organizational areas may also cause
disasters. For example, deep divisions can lead to conflict and war. Conflict over resources due to
poverty can also lead to violence. A second area of vulnerability then, is the social and organizational
aspect of a community.
✓ Family structure (weak/strong)
✓ Leadership qualities and structure
✓ Legislation
✓ Administrative structures and institutional arrangements
✓ Decision-making structures (who is left out, who is in, effectiveness)
✓ Participation levels
✓ Divisions and conflicts: ethnic, class, caste, religion, ideology, political groups, language
groups, and structures for mediating conflicts
✓ Degree of justice, equality, access to political processes
✓ Community organizations: formal, informal, traditional, governmental, progressive.
✓ Relationship to government, administrative structures
✓ Isolation or connectedness
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 • Attitudinal/Motivational Vulnerability
People who have low confidence in their ability to affect change or who have "lost heart" and
feel defeated by events they cannot control, are harder hit by disasters than those who have a sense of
their ability to bring the changes they desire. Thus, the third area of vulnerability is the attitudinal and
motivational aspect.
✓ Attitude toward change
✓ Sense of ability to affect their world, environment, get things done
✓ Initiative
✓ Faith, determination, fighting spirit
✓ Religious beliefs, ideology
✓ Fatalism, hopelessness, despondency, discouragement
✓ Dependent/independent (self-reliant)
✓ Consciousness, awareness
✓ Cohesiveness, unity, solidarity, cooperation
✓ Orientation toward past, present, and future

*** *** ***

THE PADAYON SERIES Building Resilient Communities

Disaster Readiness and Risk Reduction
Authors: Maria Isabel B. LANADA
MA. LOURDES F. MELEGRITO, PhD Cand.
Diana J. MENDOZA, PhD
Project Director: RONALDO B. MACTAL, PhD

Phoenix Publishing House

2016

Disclaimer: The School and the instructor do not claim any rights or ownership of the information found in
the learning material or module. It is a compilation from different resources which are listed in the reference
section this is solely for educational purposes only.

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 CHAPTER TEST
(Check Your Understanding)
1. Identification

___________________ 1. It is a set of prevailing or consequential conditions, which adversely affect the

community's ability to prevent, mitigate, prepare for, and respond to hazardous events.
___________________ 2. What type of vulnerability is this: People who are poor often live on marginal lands;
they don't have any savings or insurance; they are in poor health. Their physical and
material resources are miserable.
___________________ 3. They are the community members whose capacities are low and not sufficient to
withstand and overcome the damaging and adverse effects of disasters.
___________________ 4. Their capacities are higher than those in the vulnerable sector to overcome the adverse
effects of disasters.
___________________ 5. In what category of vulnerability do fatalism, discouragement, and despondency fall?

II. Enhancing Critical Thinking Skills

1. Study items listed below. Which category of vulnerability does each statement relate to based on the description
of Anderson and Woodrow:

• Poor people
• Poor location and substandard of housing/building materials
• (no access and control) land, water, animals, capital, other means of production
• Discouragement
• Infrastructure and services: roads, health facilities, schools, electricity, communications, transport,
housing, etc.
• Human capital: population, mortality, diseases, nutritional status, literacy, numeracy, poverty levels
• Marginalized in terms of social, economic, and political terms
• Environment factors: forestation, soil quality, and erosion
• Dependent
• Weak in social and organizational areas
• Divisions among community members and leaders
• Family structure (weak/strong)
• Negative attitude toward change
• Leadership qualities and structure
• Legislation
• Administrative structures and institutional arrangements
• Decision-making structures (who is left out, who is in, effectiveness)
• People who have low confidence
• Low participation levels

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 • Divisions and conflicts: ethnic, class, caste, religion, ideology, political groups, language groups, and
structures for mediating conflicts
• Low level of initiative
• Degree of justice, equality, access to political process
• Community organizations: formal, informal, traditional, governmental, progressive
• No sense of ability to affect their world
• Relationship to government, administrative structures
• Low faith and self-determination Isolation or connectedness
• Fatalism

Use this matrix/template in writing your answers.

Physical/Material Vulnerability Social/organizational Vulnerability Attitudinal/Motivational Vulnerability

2. Evaluation. Explain why certain sectors of our society are more vulnerable to disasters than others.
____________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________________
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3. Skills Development and Enhancement
Communication and analytical skills. Write a reflection paper and analyze the factors and conditions or
weaknesses which adversely affect the ability of the individuals, families, and communities to cope with or
recover from damaging effects of a disaster.

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