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Factors Affecting Resiliency Among Volunteers in Disasters: A Systematic Literature Review

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 November 2020

Hasan Ghodsi Open the ORCID record for Hasan Ghodsi [Opens in a new window] ,
Sanaz Sohrabizadeh ,
Reaza Khani Jazani  and
Amir Kavousi
Hasan Ghodsi
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing & Midwifery, Neyshabur University of Medical Sciences, Neyshabur, Iran Department of Health in Disasters and Emergencies, School of Public Health and Safety, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Sanaz Sohrabizadeh*
Affiliation:
Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Center, School of Public Health and Safety, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Reaza Khani Jazani
Affiliation:
Men’s Health and Reproductive Health Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Amir Kavousi
Affiliation:
Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Center, School of Public Health and Safety, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Sanaz Sohrabizadeh, Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Center, School of Public Health and Safety, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Daneshjou Blv, Velenjak District, Tehran, 1983535511, Iran (e-mail: ssohrabizadeh@gmail.com).
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Abstract

Objective:

Volunteers need considerable resiliency to cope with formidable challenges during their operations in disaster scenes. The present study was conducted to identify factors affecting the different aspects of resiliency among volunteers in disasters.

Material and Methods:

The databases of Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, ProQuest, Google Scholar, World Health Organization Library, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Library, PsycArticles, and SafetyLit were searched until September 29, 2018. The main search terms were resiliency, disaster, humanitarian aid worker, and volunteer.

Results:

A total of 548 documents were obtained and screened based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A number of 8 documents was selected for the final analysis. The main factors contributing to the resilience of volunteers at the 3 stages of pre-, during, and post-disasters were classified into 3 groups of individual, environmental, and organizational. Important factors affecting resilience of volunteers in disasters included previous disaster response experience and disaster-related training.

Conclusion:

Resiliency should be deemed integral to relief operations. Considering the main factors affecting volunteers’ resiliency, it is highly suggested that organizations active in humanitarian endeavors explore the factors impacting on resilience among their volunteers via various research methods and seek to select those with higher degrees of resilience in order to avert untoward consequences in their missions.

Keywords

disastersresiliencesystematic literature reviewvolunteers
Type
Systematic Review
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 16 , Issue 1 , February 2022 , pp. 398 - 404
Copyright
Copyright © 2020 Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc.

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