Title: All for one, one for all: the role of Filipino pro-social behaviours in building a disaster-resilient community

Authors: Darin Jan C. Tindowen; Honey Lei N. Bagalayos

Addresses: University of Saint Louis, Tuguegarao City, Cagayan 3500, Philippines ' University of Saint Louis, Tuguegarao City, Cagayan 3500, Philippines

Abstract: This study is conducted to explore the roles of Filipino pro-social behaviours specifically damayan (solidarity) and bayanihan (communal effort) in promoting community disaster resiliency among poor and flood-prone areas in Northern Philippines. An interpretive approach in research was utilised in the study. Fifty informants were purposively selected from the top five flood-prone communities in Northern Philippines. The results revealed that pro-social behaviours play an important role in the promotion of disaster-resiliency among the flood-prone communities since these two pro-social behaviours are used as a mechanism especially when external supports are unavailable. These two pro-social behaviours are sources of strength of the people which gives them hope for recovery when typhoons and floods hit them. As an offshoot of the study, a framework of disaster-resilient community was developed as a basis of building more disaster-resilient communities in the Philippines.

Keywords: natural disasters; pro-social behaviours' damayan (solidarity); bayanihan (communal effort); flood-prone communities; poor communities; disaster-resilient community.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSSOC.2018.096275

International Journal of Sustainable Society, 2018 Vol.10 No.3, pp.243 - 256

Received: 09 Feb 2018
Accepted: 04 Aug 2018
Published online: 21 Nov 2018 *

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