Influence of personal and collective social capital on flood preparedness and community resilience: Evidence from Old Fadama, Ghana

Social capital constitutes an important resource in vulnerable cities of the developing world where formal disaster management capacities are weak, responses are limited, and socioeconomic deprivations run deep along spatial dimensions. Yet, little is known about how the different types of social capital contribute to flood preparedness and better community resilience, particularly in informal settlement settings. Drawing on a survey of 391 respondents in Old Fadama, an informal settlement in Ghana, and using structural equation modelling, we found that personal and collective social capitals are significant predictors of flood preparedness and community resilience. However, collective social capital has a stronger predictive ability than personal social capital. Also, flood preparedness mediated the relationship between personal and collective social capital and community resilience. This makes it imperative for disaster managers and policymakers to recognise and work within the existing individual and collective networks, which has the potential to activate soft capital accumulation necessary to transition communities from vulnerability to resilience.

Automated summary

Social capital is a crucial resource in vulnerable cities of developing countries with weak disaster management capacities and limited responses. However, little is known about how different types of social capital contribute to flood preparedness and community resilience, especially in informal settlement settings. Based on a survey in Ghana, we found that personal and collective social capitals significantly predict flood preparedness and community resilience, with collective social capital having a stronger predictive ability. Additionally, flood preparedness acts as a mediator between personal and collective social capital and community resilience.