Article: Content analysis of inter-organisational communication networks on social media during disasters Journal: International Journal of Emergency Management (IJEM) 2022 Vol.17 No.3/4 pp.234 - 254 Abstract: This study conducted content analysis on social media posts to examine topics of interactive communications among organisational accounts during disasters. The objective of this paper is two-fold: 1) examine the extent to which the interactive communications among organisations on social media are related to disaster topics; and 2) uncover the evolution of topics in interorganisational communications on social media during disasters. We used Twitter data during Hurricane Harvey to conduct content analysis. The results show that: 1) 94.5% of interactive tweets among organisations during Harvey were related to Hurricane Harvey; 2) the evolution of tweet topics demonstrated a strong correlation with the triggering events and phases of disasters; and 3) the topics of organisations showed a strong correlation with functions and network positions of organisations, instead of organisation types. The study could help organisations improve disaster-related communication using online social media for better disaster preparedness, emergency response, and post-disaster recovery. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: Content analysis of inter-organisational communication networks on social media during disasters

Authors: Qingchun Li; Cheng Zhang; Ali Mostafavi

Addresses: Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University, 199 Spencer Street, College Station, TX, 77843, USA ' College of Technology – Construction Science and Organizational Leadership, Purdue University Northwest, 2200 169th Street, Hammond, IN, 46323, USA ' Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University, 199 Spencer Street, College Station, TX, 77843, USA

Abstract: This study conducted content analysis on social media posts to examine topics of interactive communications among organisational accounts during disasters. The objective of this paper is two-fold: 1) examine the extent to which the interactive communications among organisations on social media are related to disaster topics; and 2) uncover the evolution of topics in interorganisational communications on social media during disasters. We used Twitter data during Hurricane Harvey to conduct content analysis. The results show that: 1) 94.5% of interactive tweets among organisations during Harvey were related to Hurricane Harvey; 2) the evolution of tweet topics demonstrated a strong correlation with the triggering events and phases of disasters; and 3) the topics of organisations showed a strong correlation with functions and network positions of organisations, instead of organisation types. The study could help organisations improve disaster-related communication using online social media for better disaster preparedness, emergency response, and post-disaster recovery.

Keywords: content analysis; social media; twitter data; organisational communication network; disaster response.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEM.2022.125156

International Journal of Emergency Management, 2022 Vol.17 No.3/4, pp.234 - 254

Accepted: 20 Sep 2021
Published online: 31 Aug 2022 *

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Title: Content analysis of inter-organisational communication networks on social media during disasters

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