Neighborhood storytelling networks,Internet connectedness,and civic participation after the Great East Japan Earthquake |
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| Authors: | Joo-Young Jung Kiyoko Toriumi Shin Mizukoshi |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Society, Culture and Media, International Christian University, Mitaka-shi, Japan jungjy@icu.ac.jp;3. Interfaculty Initiative in Information Studies, University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Japan |
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| Abstract: | This study examines how the neighborhood storytelling network, which is conceptualized in communication infrastructure theory and includes interpersonal, organizational and community media connectedness, and an individual's Internet connectedness affected participation in civic activities in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake, which occurred on 11 March 2011. Responses from 544 randomly selected people residing in Tokyo reveal that connectedness to a neighborhood storytelling network and one's Internet connectedness have positive effects on participation in civic activities in response to the earthquake. However, the two independent factors (neighborhood storytelling and Internet connectedness) do not exhibit a significant relationship with each other. The result suggests the existence of two different conduits for civic engagement in disaster situations – neighborhood storytelling networks and Internet connectedness – mainly distinguished by age. |
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| Keywords: | civic engagement communication infrastructure Internet connectedness Japan earthquake age storytelling network |
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