The New Zealand Journal of Psychology SPECIAL ISSUE EDITORS Frank O’Connor Moa Resources Wellington Ian M. Evans Massey University Wellington SPECIAL ISSUE COORDINATOR Tia Narvaez Massey University and Victoria University of Wellington EDITOR-IN-CHIEF John Fitzgerald The Psychology Centre Hamilton ASSOCIATE EDITORS Neville Blampied Department of Psychology University of Canterbury Janet Leathem School of Psychology Massey University at Wellington Bronwyn Campbell School of Māori Studies Massey University at Palmerston North Harlene Hayne Department of Psychology University of Otago Michael O’Driscoll Department of Psychology University of Waikato
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The New Zealand Journal of Psychology is published online in three editions a year (articles will be posted as they become available) by the New Zealand Psychological Society Inc. Content may include manuscripts and shorter research notes in any substantive area of Psychology, and book reviews. Submitted manuscripts may be (a) empirical, (b) reviews of the literature, or (c) discussions of theoretical/conceptual frameworks of relevance to the practice of Psychology. Manuscripts will be considered for publication if they (a) include data collected from New Zealand samples, or (b) discuss the relevance of issues contained in the manuscript to the New Zealand social and cultural context, or to the practice of Psychology in this country. For further clarification of these requirements, please contact the Editor. See Instructions to Authors at the back for notes on preparation and submission of manuscripts and material. The material published in this issue is copyright to the New Zealand Psychological Society 2011. Publication does not necessarily reflect the views of the Society. Subscriptions Subscription to the Journal is included in Membership of the Society. Non-members may subscribe at NZ$60.00 per volume/year (three issues), plus GST (NZ only) and postage (overseas). Subscription and advertising enquiries should be addressed to the: Business Manager New Zealand Journal of Psychology NZ Psychological Society Inc. P.O. Box 4092, Wellington, New Zealand Tel +64.4.4734884; Fax +64.4.4734889 Email
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Production, printing & distribution is managed by the National Office of the NZ Psychological Society. New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
SPECIAL ISSUE REVIEWERS Carrie Barber University of Waikato Margaret Beekhuis Psychology Associates, Christchurch Neville Blampied University of Canterbury
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Tia Narvaez, a Victoria University of Wellington graduate student, recently transferred from Massey, provided reviewer and author liaison and administrative support for this Special Issue. The Editors greatly appreciate her timely and accurate communication, prompts and followup. Her good humour made rescheduling drafting much less stressful.
Ian de Terte Massey University
Geoff Trotter, Tony Brunt and Ross Becker, photographers of Christchurch, have allowed us to use, at no charge, their images to help people understand the changes underway for Canterbury.
Cashel Street from above, running away from the Bridge of Remembrance at lower left, on 31 July, 2011 – ©2011 Geoff Trotter
Jeanie Douché School of Health Sciences, Massey University Mai Frandsen University of Tasmania, Australia Bruce Glavovic School of People, Environment and Planning, Massey University Thomas Huggins Joint Centre for Disaster Research Brett Hunt Massey University Barbara Kennedy Massey University Nigel Long School of Aviation, Massey University John McClure Victoria University of Wellington Tia Narvaez Massey University Barry Parsonson Group Special Education, NZ Ministry of Education Douglas Paton University of Tasmania, Australia Gary Steel Lincoln University Ruth Tarrant Massey University
New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
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The New Zealand Journal of Psychology Volume 40, Number 4, 2011
CONTENTS Foreword
John Fitzgerald, Editor-in-Chief
1
The Context in which We Examine Disasters in New Zealand: An Editorial
Frank O’Connor, David M. Johnston, Ian M. Evans
2
New Zealanders’ Judgments of Earthquake Risk Before and After the Canterbury Earthquake: Do they Relate to Preparedness?
John McClure, Celine Wills, David Johnston, Claudia Recker
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Responding to the Psychological Consequences of Disaster: Lessons for New Zealand from the Aftermath of the Georgian-Russian conflict in 2008
Barry S. Parsonson, Jane-Mary CastelfrancAllen
12
Community Engagement Post-Disaster: Case Studies of the 2006 Matata Debris Flow and 2010 Darfield Earthquake, New Zealand
Susan Collins, Bruce Glavovic, Sarb Johal, David Johnston
17
Psychosocial Recovery from Disasters: A Framework Informed by Evidence
Maureen F. Mooney, Douglas Paton, Ian de Terte, Sarb Johal, A. Nuray Karanci, Dianne Gardner, Susan Collins, Bruce Glavovic, Thomas J. Huggins, Lucy Johnston, Ron Chambers, David M. Johnston
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The Communication of Uncertain Scientific Advice During Natural Hazard Events
Emma E. H. Doyle, David M. Johnston, John McClure, Douglas Paton
39
Post-Earthquake Psychological Functioning in Adults with Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder: Positive Effects of Micronutrients on Resilience
Julia J. Rucklidge, Neville M. Blampied
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After the Earthquakes: Immediate Post-Disaster Work with Children and Families
Richard Sawrey, Charles Waldegrave, Taimalieutu Kiwi Tamasese, Allister Bush
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Organisational and Cultural Factors that Promote Coping: With Reference to Haiti and Christchurch
John Fawcett
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PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLES
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CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS An Overview of the Canterbury District Health Board Mental Health Service’s Response to the 2010 - 2011 Canterbury Earthquakes
Ron Chambers, Rose Henderson
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Promoting Recovery and Building Resilience for Individuals and Communities
Eileen Britt, Martin Dorahy, Janet Carter, Petra Hoggath, Ainslee Coates, Marie Meyer, Katharina Naswall
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NZ Defence Force Response to the Christchurch Earthquake of February 2011
Geoff Sutton, Marty Fourie
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People, Places and Shifting Paradigms – when ‘South Island’ Stoicism isn’t Enough
Shelley Dean
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Principles guiding Practice and Responses to Recent Community Disasters in New Zealand
Rose Brown
86
Provision of Support to Schools and Early Childhood Services after the Pike River Disaster
Patrick McEntyre
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The Education Welfare Response Following the February 2011 Earthquake
Bill Gilmore, Candice Larson
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Long Term Support in Schools and Early Childhood Services after February 2011
Shelley Dean
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Lubricating Civic Reconstruction: Reducing Losses due to Inter-Organisational Friction
Frank O'Connor
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For Better or for Worse: How Initial Support Provision Adapted to Needs
Jonathan Black, Jay McLean
111
How Communities in Christchurch Have Been Coping with Their Earthquake
Libby Gawith
121
Living with Volcanic Risk: The Consequences of, and Response to, Ongoing Volcanic Ashfall from a Social Infrastructure Systems Perspective on Montserrat
Victoria Sword-Daniels
131
Immediately
SPECIAL ISSUE LINKS
139
INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS
141
New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
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Advocacy
Established in 1947, NZPsS is the largest professional association for psychologists in Aotearoa / New Zealand. Over 1,200 practitioner, academic and student psychologists are members and subscribers of the NZPsS, from diverse sub-disciplines and work environments. The NZPsS is an incorporated society, governed by an elected National Executive, and managed by an executive director and staff based in its National Office in Wellington. The Society has an institute and branch matrix structure of specialism and regional groups. The Society exists to: ●
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Promote the discipline of psychology as a science and the practice of psychology as a profession Promote the development and use of psychological knowledge for alleviation of social problems and reduction of social inequalities, consistent with the principle of empowerment Promote high standards of ethical and professional conduct and practice by psychologists Promote the teaching and dissemination of knowledge and skill in basic and applied psychology Ensure that all its policies and practices are responsive to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and to New Zealand’s cultural diversity Ensure that the New Zealand Psychological Society is a highly valued, proactive and successful professional body that operates to best practice principles
Awhi kokiringa ā whakamatau hinengaro i Aotearoa —————————————————Supporting and advancing psychology in Aotearoa New Zealand • vi•
The Society expresses the collective views of psychologists in government and non-government environments and in the media. The Society advocates on behalf of its members on professional and clientrelevant issues. Society position statements express our strategic direction and policies on issues which impact on the psychological services and the health and welfare of New Zealanders. They are developed using members’ expertise and may be changed or added to over time.
In addition to monthly news for members, the Society publishes. Psychology Aotearoa twice yearly, to inform members about relevant practice, research, social and political issues, celebrate the achievements of members; give a forum for bicultural exchange; show contributions from students; air views of members and connect members with their peers. Code of Ethics All members receive a copy of the national Code of Ethics, written with significant input by Society members, which guides legal practice for New Zealand psychologists and safeguards individual and community wellbeing.
Professional Development Members pay reduced rates at our full range of professional development events. Workshops are held around the country and in conjunction with the annual conference. Events use local and international expertise to assist members to enhance skills and knowledge, and to maintain continuing competence, a requirement of registration with the New Zealand Psychologists Board. Annual Conference The location of the annual conference moves about the country. The conference allows members and non-members to present to their peers, to hear cutting edge international and local experts, to attend workshops and to network with colleagues. Publications The New Zealand Journal of Psychology is a peer-reviewed journal, published about psychology relevant to New Zealand and our neighbours. The Society publishes up-to-date guidebooks relevant to practice and research in New Zealand. Information and Resources The Society’s position statements, submissions and media releases can be found on our website’s public pages. Information and links to useful professional resources are also there, with links to some resources for the public. The website also carries member-only information, news, and publications.
Referral Database Members can choose to place their details on the NZPsS website referral database, which provides the public with a facility to locate psychologists in particular areas of practice in New Zealand. Cultural Justice and Equity The Society has a commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the attainment of cultural and social justice and equity. It has a National Standing Committee on Bicultural Issues, which contributes to publications and advises the Executive on policy development and action. Awards and Fellowship The Society makes awards to recognise psychologists’ excellence in research and practice, and contributions to the profession and its public. Links and Networks The Society assists members to connect with colleagues through branch activities, membership of institutes/divisions and special interest groups. The Society is affiliated with the Royal Society of New Zealand and the International Union of Psychological Science and has links and MOUs with psychological societies in other countries. Find us at www.psychology.org.nz,, call us on +64.4.4734884 or email us at
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New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
Foreword John Fitzgerald, Editor-in-Chief, New Zealand Journal of Psychology
On behalf of the New Zealand Journal of Psychology and the New Zealand Psychological Society (NZPsS), I would like to open this Supplementary Issue by acknowledging the generosity of spirit and energy of those who have worked so hard to bring this project to completion. Psychologists and their professional affiliates in Canterbury recognised the importance of the work they could do to assist the population during recovery from the earthquakes beginning on 4 September, 2010. As the aftershocks continued these psychologists continued their efforts to help with clinical treatment, public awareness, in-school services and in support of organisations and people involved in reassessing and repairing the physical, social and environmental damage. Professional support came from psychologists and allied professionals around the country and from further afield. A lot of the effort was unpaid, motivated by doing something for the city and its people. During October 2010, Frank O’Connor (President of the NZPsS, quarter-time Christchurch resident and one of this issue’s guest editors) asked some of those directly involved if they would consider telling of their experiences, with whatever professional comparisons and reflection time allowed, at the 2011 NZPsS annual conference. The invitation was taken up, reflecting the breadth of research and practice of the discipline: clinical research, organisational development, educational crisis response, community perspectives and counselling practices.
In June 2011, just two months prior to the annual conference of the NZPsS I was approached by the guest editors with a proposal. They had now a three-day symposium entitled “Earthquake: Response and Recovery” of 21 presentations directly related to the experiences of those in Christchurch, or on closely associated themes. A number of the presenters were Cantabrians living in the earthquake zone, or were people who had some association with the events which had unfolded since September 2010. This issue’s guest editors, Frank O’Connor (symposium convenor) and Prof Ian Evans (Massey University), wanted to capture the content of the symposium for publication so that the wisdom, knowledge, and humanity expressed would not be lost, but rather that it be made freely available to all New Zealanders and other interested parties. This extra issue of the Journal exists largely due to their foresight, creativity and diligence. Frank O’Connor and Ian Evans played significant roles during the conference by chairing sessions, leading discussions, and generally keeping proceedings on track. The whole symposium was audio recorded. Formal manuscripts of presentations were used where available. We are indebted to the many authors who presented their experiences and
New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
knowledge. We are also grateful for the encouragement and practical support of the Joint Centre for Disaster Research. All the presentations were transcribed, and we are grateful to Tia Narvaez (Massey and then Victoria University of Wellington) for her supportive work ensuring that the editors did not get too tangled in the morass of audio and digital files, and manuscripts. We are also grateful to the many reviewers who read and reread the manuscripts, assisting the authors and editors in polishing the final product. Finally, Frank O’Connor turned his hand to typesetting and Ian Evans, once again, demonstrated his familiarly with the contents of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. The original goal of the guest editors was to ‘capture the moment’ so that time could be taken to reflect, review and learn, honouring the experiences and those who had experienced it. I believe that this has been achieved, and the NZPsS owes a great debt to those involved in the production of this publication. We thank all the psychologists who have contributed to this work, and the work it reports.
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The Context in which We Examine Disasters in New Zealand: An Editorial Frank O’Connor, Moa Resources David Johnston, Joint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University and GNS Science Ian M. Evans, Massey University
This is a tale of two earthquakes (you could say many more on account of persistent aftershocks) that were, in a Dickensian way, the best of times and the worst of times. It is a tale of two cities as well. There are a lot of contrasts between the east and the west of the city, and between the two events, as well as lots of comparisons. In September 2010 we had good luck. We had a night-time earthquake, and it happened in a rural area so the shaking intensity decreased the closer you were to town. We thought we had seen it all in September, but tragically, this was not the only major event. We had good luck in September. We had extremely bad luck in February, 2011. The central business district was built on soft soils. An unknown fault axis was directed straight at it. No other known geological configuration could have delivered Christchurch a worse event. Our luck ran out that lunchtime—the geological gun barrel pointing straight at the centre of the city was loaded by years of gradual pressure, primed by the events of and since September and delivered an earthquake like no other to the Christchurch central business district and southern and eastern suburbs. This was, indeed, bad luck. The fault could have been orientated a different way, but it was orientated in the way it was. We might
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have known about it, but we didn’t. We might have had another jolt like September, but we got some of the greatest ground accelerations ever recorded anywhere on this planet – right in the heart of Christchurch. It was actually the greatest vertical acceleration ever instrumentally recorded at almost 2g. We can still see and feel the consequences of that release of energy. Of all the many physical, social, environmental, and economic aspects of natural disasters, the psychological dimension is arguably the most important to humans. Whether in terms of preparing adequately for a disaster, functioning effectively in the midst of catastrophe, or coping with and surviving emotionally the aftermath, psychological understanding provides a critical domain of both theory and practice that determines the crucial outcome: the effects on people’s lives and wellbeing. This flows into how we change our physical world, and our relationship with the land and our history. The New Zealand Psychological Society Supports Learning The New Zealand Psychological Society promotes the valuable role of the science and practice of psychology. In 2011, its President,
Frank O’Connor, organised an extensive three-day programme of research presentations, discussion, and information sharing at the annual conference of the Society in Queenstown. This was just a few months after the second and most devastating earthquake to disrupt the security and lives of thousands of people living and working in the Christchurch region. Aftershocks continue still, and were felt during the Conference. The New Zealand Psychological Society is the major professional organisation representing all areas and branches of culturally responsive psychological practice and research in Aotearoa New Zealand: clinical practitioners, educational ones working with schools and children, social, community and developmental psychologists involved with families and societal groups, and organisational specialists, working with other personnel to manage, lead, plan and evaluate organisational achievement. By bringing together such diverse interests, knowledge, and skills, Frank’s goal was to facilitate communication and to enhance the potential role of psychologists in making a difference to current and future disaster responsiveness in New Zealand. So successful was this exchange that we decided to capture
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as much of the presentations as possible and to publish them in a special issue of the Society’s flagship journal. The current issue represents this effort, both in reproducing some of the more formal papers presented as well as capturing the informal presentations and discussion. We are impressed by the variety of papers revealing the richness of psychology’s potential contribution to psycho-social responses to a disaster such this, which has impacted the lives of so many people in Canterbury. The Joint Centre for Disaster Research Integrates Knowledge The conference symposium was co-sponsored by the Joint Centre for Disaster Research (JCDR). This Centre is a collaboration between the School of Psychology at Massey University and GNS Science, designed to bring a strong psychological and social science perspective to the outstanding contribution GNS Science makes in geophysical research. The Director of JCDR is Professor David Johnston. Until five years ago, he spent 15 years of his life with GNS Science, which is the Government Crown Research Institute which does geological investigation and monitoring. About five years ago, under David’s leadership, the social science team within GNS Science joined with Massey University faculty to form this joint research centre. The importance of such collaboration lies partly in a simple disconnect: the physical scientists of GNS Science understand the natural environment and the risk we face in New Zealand. But the difference between their understandings and how people perceive risk has never been fully recognised or explored. The JCDR had engaged somewhat with many Government departments in September. In February there was a more concerted effort to understand, across a range of organisations, what were the likely impacts of this event, and what overseas experience could help guide response and recovery efforts. New Zealand sits on a plate boundary, so we face a number of
perils. This particular subduction zone is very similar to what lies off Japan, so one future warning is that the tsunamis we saw in Japan one day in 2011 may also be seen along the east coast of the North Island. These are things we know about. But often there is a disconnection between this kind of knowledge and how the public see and respond to the risk. New Zealand has had a long history of earthquakes, several of which were magnitude 7+, but had not had any of magnitude 7+ in populated areas for a long time. From information to hand prior to the Canterbury earthquake, physical scientists had produced a hazard model for New Zealand. It was up-todate in terms of information available prior to the earthquake. It showed Canterbury in a moderate seismic risk zone—leadership in Christchurch, and engineers had talked about it for some years. Just as JCDR has a new setting to investigate, the longstanding partnership between the Engineering School and psychology faculty at the University of Canterbury has a new arena for collaboration. Psychological considerations include people’s understanding of the risk. Members of the public often say things like, “Wellington has a high risk of earthquakes.”, but there are other communities that have even higher probabilities than Wellington. Public perception and understanding does not often match statistical models. The probability of occurrence is not the same as the frequency of occurrence. If an area is more likely to have an earthquake, this does not mean that it will get the next one. We saw that with Kobe. The day before the Kobe earthquake in Japan the odds of Tokyo getting a major earthquake were three to four times greater than in Kobe. And higher or lower frequencies of having an event does not mean the next will, occur here. However a lot of people had been discounting the risk, because they were a lower probability or frequency than somewhere else. Peer-Reviewed Articles The articles in this special issue went through the peer review process
New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
of ordinary submissions to the New Zealand Journal of Psychology, organised for this issue by Ian Evans. There were small variations, however. We asked the reviewers (two for each submission) to consider the practical merits of the contribution in addition to its scientific or scholarly potential. And, in most cases, it was not possible to conduct blind reviews: everyone knows everyone else in this field. Even so, the reviewers worked collaboratively with the very patient authors and we thank them for their speediness, their thoroughness, and their supportive ethos. We wanted a wide range of papers demonstrating some of the reach and range of psychology and the potential contribution of psychologists. The first paper, by Professor John McClure, takes up one of the themes of this Editorial: public perception is critical. He presents fascinating data on New Zealanders’ perceptions of earthquake risk in different parts of the country—a crucial element of future preparedness by communities and individuals. The second paper, based on practical experiences in a different setting (the Republic of Georgia) and a different type of disaster (a short, destructive, civil war), offers valuable lessons for any psychologist hoping to provide mental health support to a traumatised population. Barry Parsonson and JaneMary Castelfranc-Allen, two New Zealand clinical psychologists who have made a long-term, highly valued contribution to establishing appropriate mental health services for children in Georgia, describe their experiences and suggest the important lessons to be learned. A critical lesson is the importance of local community engagement as opposed to the more distant and sometime misguided role of large service organisations, and it this theme of community engagement that is analysed in the third paper by Susan Collins and colleagues from JCDR. Their report, that people impacted by disaster felt isolated and forgotten, is not unlike the experience of Georgians, many kilometres and cultures distant. This reveals the significance of community participation as well as engagement. •3•
The Context in which We Examine Disasters in New Zealand: An Editorial
From these interesting samples of the relevance of psychological understanding, we can see the importance of research and consultation linking the social and behavioural sciences with the geophysical sciences. The next paper in the series explains the nature and role of the consultation provided to Christchurch, with many of the themes identified in the two previous papers being emphasised again, such as training mental health providers and achieving community engagement. You can see from the range and varied backgrounds of the authors of this paper the importance of bringing together many different professional perspectives. Then follow two papers representing unique scientific contributions. Emma Doyle is a volcanologist by training but she has taken to heart the disconnect we mentioned earlier regarding the geological perspective and the psychological perspective. Geophysicists report probabilities in a variety of ways. They know what they mean. But the public and the emergency managers who have to warn the public may not know what they mean. This body of work represents an extremely important contribution to emergency management preparedness and response capability. A second paper with a strong empirical basis is the sixth in this series, by University of Canterbury behavioural and clinical scientists Neville Blampied and Julia Rucklidge. The Christchurch earthquakes provide an intervention of stress, permitting a natural experimental approach. It seems we can take advantage of the potential for knowledge building about how individuals respond to stress. In their ingenious study, we see some of the first evidence of the benefits of micronutrients for anxiety and depression. We end the peer-reviewed papers with two intriguing explorations of the fundamental importance of culture. Like the Georgia experience of Parsonson and Rawls, Richard Sawrey and his colleagues draw from their participation in offering psychological “first-aid” to the people of Samoa •4•
after the devastating tsunami. By combining cultural knowledge with sound principles from narrative and family therapy this multi-cultural team was able to provide valuable training for support people in Canterbury. Their paper also offers important caveats regarding the nature of initial services for people who have experienced trauma. Drawing another cultural parallel, John Fawcett adds crucial insights derived from his distinguished career in the provision of international aid and relief following natural disasters. Surely many people, horrified at the tragedy in Haiti, will be aware of how easy it is to push the plight of the people of Haiti from everyday concern and consciousness. That is a phenomenon that we trust will never be true for Christchurch as the threat to normal and stable life in the region continues unabated.
of psychology to assist in disaster situations. Correspondence with the authors is encouraged, especially to clarify reasons for choosing particular actions in the setting described. We note too that most of the authors of these proceedings receive no funding for the time involved in preparation. Their considerable hours are an uncosted public good, donated by psychologists for the benefit of their communities and professional colleagues.
Conference Presentations At the three day conference, however, there were many other valuable presentations that either the authors wished to remain as a more informal narrative format, or that the presenters did not have time to rework as a paper, or after peer review it was felt the material was more suited to a presentation format. We had the presentations tape-recorded and transcribed and then invited the speakers to edit them briefly for the special issue. In many cases, authors added material developed in the months and events prior to publication.
In addition to the earthquake response, a number of other community disasters in New Zealand have needed professional support in school and pre-school settings. Five presentations cover work by educational psychologists. The presentations demonstrate quick adaptation to differing needs and to strengthen short and long term responses in the education setting.
As a result, the presentation documents, edited by Frank O’Connor, have a large amount of supplementary material which will be of interest to many. We did not want the wisdom and experience of so many skilled individuals to be lost. Each presentation offers the views and experience of its authors, for others to consider in the event of similar situations arising in future. While some inferences are drawn about relevance of these experiences to other settings, these proceedings have not been peer reviewed, may not cite all relevant references, and should be regarded as part of a large body of learning in progress in the application
Conference presentations included here open with an account of the provision of psychosocial support at various levels and in a context of evolving acceptance. The psychological services of the New Zealand Defence Force response to February 2011 Earthquake is described, with reflection on learnings and changes made.
O'Connor presents some organisational phenomenon peculiar to long-term uncertainty, relating the individual, group and intergroup experiences, with new tools to facilitate adaptation or improvement. Also looking at organisational needs, Black and McLean report aspects of organisations adjusting initial support provision as information on physical and social impacts became available. Gawith uses a community psychology perspective to report aspects of how communities in Christchurch have been coping as the year of aftershocks closes with no subterranean peace in sight. A complementary presentation from Sword-Daniels looks at the long-term adjustment of the population to the second decade of continuous hazard of volcanic ashfall on Montserrat. Again, the response of the people living in
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uncertainty is reported and their priorities explored. Conclusion This special issue speaks of the experiences, knowledge, cultural awareness, and interpersonal understandings of professionals affiliated with the discipline of psychology. Such professionals have made and are making important contributions to many aspects of supporting Canterbury, post September and February earthquakes and subsequent aftershocks. The Canterbury context poses a substantial
challenge for all professionals, given that the earthquakes were without modern precedent and that their persistence appears unique. New Zealand is a small country in terms of population. Few people have not been directly affected by the lives and property lost, schools were disrupted and pupils scattered across the country, businesses and families were forced to move. Residents continue to face aftershocks and general disruption to everyday life. From the beginning in September 2010, to the end of January, over
10,000 aftershocks recorded.
have
been
We hope that New Zealand’s research community can learn from these events to help build more a resilient country in the years to come, in ways that reflect the world-views and priorities of all the people of the place. Perhaps we will see a more substantial focus on disaster research from New Zealand psychologists, as part of this process.
Winter sun sets on new liquefaction, 13 June 2011 — ©2011 Geoff Trotter
New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
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The Context in which We Examine Disasters in New Zealand: An Editorial
Spring flowers rise, September 2011 — ©2011 Ross Becker
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New Zealand Journal of Psychology Vol. 40, No. 4. 2011
