Tornado Warnings in Three Southern States: A Qualitative Analysis of Public Response Patterns

Recent research in three Southern states supplied data describing the role community structure and culture played in shaping public response to tornado risks. The following study identifies and describes how residents received, made sense of, and ultimately used information to make decisions about responding to warnings. In addition to a range of theoretical concerns, research was also intended to develop a set of safety policies derived from what the data reveals about the social psychology of risk perception, economic constraints to shelter, and the cultural aspects of response. Data analysis reveals a diverse set of social factors governing community response to tornado warnings, including social networks, language, issues in comprehension, siren ambiguities, false alarms, tornado tracking, local business behaviors, warning specificity, and cultural myths.