Extending impact: factors influencing households to adopt hazard-resistant construction practices in post-disaster settings

More than 165,0004 vulnerable families in disaster‑affected communities have been supported by Catholic Relief Services over the past decade to reconstruct their homes using specific construction practices that can better withstand cyclones, earthquakes, floods and other hazards. In the same disaster‑affected communities, many other families who were not beneficiaries of CRS projects also rebuilt their homes using their own resources, often replicating some of the hazard‑resistant construction practices recommended by CRS and its partners.

To understand what enables some people to act independently to reduce disaster risk through the construction of their homes, and what prevents others from doing so, CRS conducted a multi‑country study using a recognised behavior change methodology. Designing for Behavior Change is a methodology used to understand what influences people’s behavior by analysing 12 determinants: what prompts, guides or drives people to behave in a certain way.