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Environment and Behavior, Vol. 36, No. 5, 701-716 (2004)
DOI: 10.1177/0013916504265438

Perceptions of Accident Foreseeability and Stress and Coping During the Evacuation Period of Technological Disaster

Lori J. Lange

The University of North Florida llange{at}unf.edu

Loren L. Toussaint

Idaho State University

Raymond Fleming

The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee

The public depends on experts to manage risks of technologies and to prevent or warn of a possible mishap. Perceptions of experts’ ability to predict accidents were investigated in evacuees and controls during the threat of explosion from the derailment of a train carrying liquid propane. Evacuees showed elevated stress response levels compared to controls across psychological, behavioral, and physiological modalities. Perceptions of transportation accident foreseeability moderated physiological stress for evacuees, with stronger perceptions of accident predictability associated with lower stress hormone levels. Perceptions of transportation accident foreseeability also were associated with a reactance-style response to the disaster and problem-solving coping style in evacuees. Perceptions associated with greater secondary predictability moderated the physiological stress effects of the accident on evacuees during the acute phase of the disaster and furthermore, was associated with more efforts to regain control through more active coping.

Key Words: stress & coping • technological disaster • train derailment • secondary predictability • stress hormones


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