Social Media Contribution to the Crisis Management Processes: Towards a More Accurate Response Integrating Citizen-Generated Content and Citizen-Led Activities

Abstract

AbstractThe two policy questions addressed in this chapter cover the whole crisis management cycle from the response and recovery to prevention and preparedness. They consider both the benefit of using citizen-generated content and the challenges of integrating citizen-led initiatives in the response. On the one hand, focusing on data allows interrogating the IT methods available to collect, process and deliver relevant information to support decision-making and response engagement. On the other hand, considering citizens’ contribution and initiatives to the crisis management processes and response requires working on organizational and collaborative processes from local, regional, national or transnational levels. This chapter frames an up-do-date state of the art on the questions of citizens’ generated content and led initiatives for crisis management and response, and it proposes directions to policy makers to that respect. It places the question of mutual trust between institutions and citizens as a key problematic in a hybrid world where mediated communication and interactions with citizens required new and adapted practices from professionals of crisis management.