John F. Kennedy's Crisis And The Human Response

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Running head: CRISIS AND THE HUMAN RESPONSE Crisis and the Human Response David L. Smith (#4054322) Dr. Thomas D. Phelan, EDMG503 June 21, 2009 Crisis and the Human Response “_When written in Chinese, the word "crisis" is composed of two characters-one represents danger, and the other represents opportunity._” -John F. Kennedy As an Emergency Planner, many factors must be considered: identifying threats to a community, the level of risk their community faces from a particular threat, training of employees and volunteers, coordinating various response teams, mitigation of threats, and many others. Also included in the vast planning phase of emergency management is the integration of understanding the psychology…show more content…
Although it is indeed very rare, panic flight does occur under certain circumstances. In research dating back to the early 1950’s, analysis of situations in which panic flight took place indicates that there are several conditions that must occur. For panic to occur there must be: 1.) the perception of immediate and extreme danger; 2.) the existence of a limited number of escape routes; 3.) the perception that the escape routes are closing, demanding quick action; and 4.) a lack of communication that clarifies the danger in the situation. We emphasize that these conditions are defined in terms of the individual’s perceptions or beliefs. Theconditions are based on what those at risk believe to be true at the time, not on what the emergency managers know after the fact. It is also important to distinguish between the occurrence of an event and the potential for dangerous consequences resulting from that event. For example, trapped miners who realize that they will have sufficient air until rescue comes don’t panic. It is the possibility that the air will be exhausted that causes panic. Just being tapped does not cause the…show more content…
However, it is not a frequently observed reaction to any type of disaster. When panic flight is observed, it seems to involve a small proportion of the people exposed to the threat. It does not usually persist for any period of time. It should be remembered that even in cases where conditions for panic flight exist, it does not always materialize. (It has been reported) that during the 1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club firein Kentucky (where 160 patrons died), the evacuation was orderly and altruistic responses were common. Furthermore, the evacuation of the World Trade Center in 1993 was tense but orderly. There were no reports of panic flight. The same constructive behaviors were observed in the stairwells of the same buildings on 9/11” (Perry and Lindell, 2007, pp.

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