Del Afrontamiento Colectivo al Crecimiento Postraumático Comunitario: Análisis Mediacional del Empoderamiento ante un Desastre Climatológico

• Published in: Psykhe 2022-01, Vol.31 (2)
• Main Authors: Sandoval-Díaz, José, David Cuadra Martínez, Pérez-Zapata, Daniel
• Format: Article
• Language: eng ; spa
• Subjects: Coping; Disasters; Empowerment
• ISSN: 0717-0297; 0718-2228
• DOI: 10.7764/psykhe.2019.22345

The increase in extreme events caused by climate change carries the need of building coping capacities and empowerment among susceptible and exposed communities before these risky episodes. The aim of the present study was to clarify the relationship between collective active coping strategies and post-traumatic growing, considering empowerment as a possible mediator. Using a purposive non-probabilistic sampling, 324 households affected by a climatologic disaster in Copiapó (Chile) were surveyed, assessing their coping capacities, empowerment, their impact-of-the-event perceptions, and reassessment of positive changes. For data analysis, descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, multiple regression analysis, and simple mediation analysis were performed. Results indicate that active coping capacities correlated directly with post-traumatic community growth, and this association was partially mediated by empowerment according to a path analysis with bootstrapping method. This research contributes to better understanding adaptive coping strategies, particularly focusing on disaster events as potential opportunities for development and wellbeing within specific empowering contexts. In addition, we propose that it is necessary to critically examine current models of community resilience against socionatural disasters.