{"id":{"repo_id":"mit","oai_identifier":"oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/162551"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/mit/oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/162551","repository":{"repo_id":"mit","name":"MIT","base_url":"https://dspace.mit.edu/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Enhancing Community Risk Preparedness for Flooding Emergencies: A System Dynamics Approach for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers","abstract":"Flooding events pose a significant and growing threat to communities in the United States, particularly as climate change alters weather patterns and sea levels continue to rise. This thesis examines how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) can enhance community preparedness for flood emergencies through improved risk communication strategies. Focusing on the New England District as a representative case, it integrates data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Household Survey and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims archive to develop and calibrate a System Dynamics model of flood risk perception and preparedness. The model built in this thesis incorporates key variables and captures the feedback loops that influence community preparedness over time. Scenario testing demonstrates that monthly to quarterly engagements by USACE help sustain risk awareness and reduce flood-related damage, whereas less frequent engagement demonstrates minimal improvement above the baseline. By contrast, barriers to action, such as complex procedures or limited access to information, can substantially slow the adoption of preparedness measures. High levels of trust in authorities further amplify the effectiveness of risk communication and foster community engagement. This model quantifies the importance of frequent engagement, low barriers to action, and trust-building initiatives in reducing flood impact. Through calibration against historical claims and survey data, the model provides a robust framework that can guide USACE and partner agencies in refining their own flood risk communication strategies to bolster community resilience.","abstract_html":"Flooding events pose a significant and growing threat to communities in the United States, particularly as climate change alters weather patterns and sea levels continue to rise. This thesis examines how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) can enhance community preparedness for flood emergencies through improved risk communication strategies. Focusing on the New England District as a representative case, it integrates data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Household Survey and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims archive to develop and calibrate a System Dynamics model of flood risk perception and preparedness. The model built in this thesis incorporates key variables and captures the feedback loops that influence community preparedness over time. Scenario testing demonstrates that monthly to quarterly engagements by USACE help sustain risk awareness and reduce flood-related damage, whereas less frequent engagement demonstrates minimal improvement above the baseline. By contrast, barriers to action, such as complex procedures or limited access to information, can substantially slow the adoption of preparedness measures. High levels of trust in authorities further amplify the effectiveness of risk communication and foster community engagement. This model quantifies the importance of frequent engagement, low barriers to action, and trust-building initiatives in reducing flood impact. Through calibration against historical claims and survey data, the model provides a robust framework that can guide USACE and partner agencies in refining their own flood risk communication strategies to bolster community resilience.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Hoyt, Thomas S."],"institution":"Massachusetts Institute of Technology","degree_name":"Master","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":"System Design and Management Program.","school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["Rhodes, Donna H."],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-05","date_published":"2025-05","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:21:46Z","subjects":[],"languages":[],"rights":["In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted","Copyright retained by author(s)"],"rights_urls":["https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/"],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/162551","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.uri"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Rhodes, Donna H."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.department","label":"Department","values":["System Design and Management Program."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Hoyt, Thomas S."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.accessioned","label":"Dc Date Accessioned","values":["2025-08-27T14:32:42Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2025-08-27T14:32:42Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2025-05"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Massachusetts Institute of Technology"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master","Master of Science in Engineering and Management"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted","Copyright retained by author(s)"]},{"key":"dc:rights.uri","label":"Rights URI","values":["https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/162551"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Flooding events pose a significant and growing threat to communities in the United States, particularly as climate change alters weather patterns and sea levels continue to rise. This thesis examines how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) can enhance community preparedness for flood emergencies through improved risk communication strategies. Focusing on the New England District as a representative case, it integrates data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Household Survey and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims archive to develop and calibrate a System Dynamics model of flood risk perception and preparedness. The model built in this thesis incorporates key variables and captures the feedback loops that influence community preparedness over time. Scenario testing demonstrates that monthly to quarterly engagements by USACE help sustain risk awareness and reduce flood-related damage, whereas less frequent engagement demonstrates minimal improvement above the baseline. By contrast, barriers to action, such as complex procedures or limited access to information, can substantially slow the adoption of preparedness measures. High levels of trust in authorities further amplify the effectiveness of risk communication and foster community engagement. This model quantifies the importance of frequent engagement, low barriers to action, and trust-building initiatives in reducing flood impact. Through calibration against historical claims and survey data, the model provides a robust framework that can guide USACE and partner agencies in refining their own flood risk communication strategies to bolster community resilience."]},{"key":"dc:description.degree","label":"Dc Description Degree","values":["S.M."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Enhancing Community Risk Preparedness for Flooding Emergencies: A System Dynamics Approach for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Rhodes, Donna H."],"dc:contributor.department":["System Design and Management Program."],"dc:creator":["Hoyt, Thomas S."],"dc:date.accessioned":["2025-08-27T14:32:42Z"],"dc:date.available":["2025-08-27T14:32:42Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2025-05"],"dc:description.abstract":["Flooding events pose a significant and growing threat to communities in the United States, particularly as climate change alters weather patterns and sea levels continue to rise. This thesis examines how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) can enhance community preparedness for flood emergencies through improved risk communication strategies. Focusing on the New England District as a representative case, it integrates data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Household Survey and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims archive to develop and calibrate a System Dynamics model of flood risk perception and preparedness. The model built in this thesis incorporates key variables and captures the feedback loops that influence community preparedness over time. Scenario testing demonstrates that monthly to quarterly engagements by USACE help sustain risk awareness and reduce flood-related damage, whereas less frequent engagement demonstrates minimal improvement above the baseline. By contrast, barriers to action, such as complex procedures or limited access to information, can substantially slow the adoption of preparedness measures. High levels of trust in authorities further amplify the effectiveness of risk communication and foster community engagement. This model quantifies the importance of frequent engagement, low barriers to action, and trust-building initiatives in reducing flood impact. Through calibration against historical claims and survey data, the model provides a robust framework that can guide USACE and partner agencies in refining their own flood risk communication strategies to bolster community resilience."],"dc:description.degree":["S.M."],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/162551"],"dc:publisher":["Massachusetts Institute of Technology"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted","Copyright retained by author(s)"],"dc:rights.uri":["https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/"],"dc:title":["Enhancing Community Risk Preparedness for Flooding Emergencies: A System Dynamics Approach for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master","Master of Science in Engineering and Management"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:21:46Z"}