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The Promise and Pitfalls of Community Resilience

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 December 2013

Lori Uscher-Pines ,
Anita Chandra  and
Joie Acosta
Lori Uscher-Pines*
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, Arlington, Virginia
Anita Chandra
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, Arlington, Virginia
Joie Acosta
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, Arlington, Virginia
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to Lori Uscher-Pines, PhD, 1200 S Hayes St, Arlington, VA 22202 (e-mail luscherp@rand.org)
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Abstract

An important shift in terminology has occurred in emergency preparedness, and the concept of community resilience has become ubiquitous. Although enhancing community resilience is broader than preparedness, and emphasizes a distinct set of activities and participants, the terms are often used interchangeably. The implications of this shift have not been fully explored. This commentary describes the potential promise and pitfalls of the concept of community resilience and recommends strategies to overcome its limitations. We believe that resilience has the power to dramatically change this field in immense, positive ways, but some important challenges such as confusion about definitions and lack of accountability must first be overcome. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2013;7:603-606)

Keywords

community resilienceemergency preparedness
Type
Commentary
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 7 , Issue 6 , December 2013 , pp. 603 - 606
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2013 

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