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Adolescent Victims of Natural Disasters:A Phenomenological Study on LivedExperiences and Behaviors Displayedafter a CrisisLakisha Mearidy-Bell aa College of Social Sciences, University of Phoenix , Baton Rouge ,Louisiana , USAPublished online: 20 Apr 2013.

To cite this article: Lakisha Mearidy-Bell (2013) Adolescent Victims of Natural Disasters: APhenomenological Study on Lived Experiences and Behaviors Displayed after a Crisis, Journal ofHuman Behavior in the Social Environment, 23:4, 536-551, DOI: 10.1080/10911359.2013.765818

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Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 23:536–551, 2013

Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

ISSN: 1091-1359 print/1540-3556 online

DOI: 10.1080/10911359.2013.765818

Adolescent Victims of Natural Disasters:A Phenomenological Study on Lived Experiences

and Behaviors Displayed after a Crisis

Lakisha Mearidy-Bell

College of Social Sciences, University of Phoenix, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA

This qualitative study explored lived experiences and behavioral changes among 15 adolescent victims

of natural disasters utilizing the behaviorism perspective. Volunteer adolescent victims participated in

a semi-standardized open-end interview, and data were coded using pattern recognition, theme, and

content analysis. Results identified that participants’ most prevalent themes for behavioral changes

were isolation, social withdrawal, increased arguments with family and friends, avoid relationships,

and over-protectiveness. Prevalent themes for lived experiences were moving to a new home, changing

schools, and mother or father lost job. The majority of the participants reported hurricanes as their

natural disaster experience. In conclusion, adolescent victims reported multiple behavioral changes

that were a result of a natural disaster such as hurricanes. Likewise, these victims reported facing

many lived experiences after a natural disaster occurrence.

Keywords: Adolescents, behaviorism, crisis, lived experiences, natural disasters, qualitative, victims

INTRODUCTION

Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Wilma, Ike, and Gustav; the fires in California, Florida, and Georgia; the

cyclone occurrence in Myanmar, Asia; and the earthquake in Japan were all natural disasters that

brought emotional devastation to the lives of many people in the United States and other countries.Natural disasters can create widespread social displacement and physical destruction, more than

any other investigated trauma (Mizuta et al., 2005). Natural disasters are defined as ecological

phenomena that can happen suddenly without notice or awareness, and they require the immediate

external assistance of humans to assess the needs of the disaster and the population affected(Galambos, 2005; Gelman & Mirabito, 2005; North & Hong, 2000; Ripley & Kluger, 2006).

Recently, natural disasters have impacted every part of the world more frequently than what has

been historically recorded, and according to Ripley and Kluger (2006), children are deeply affected

by these disasters in a way that leaves them feeling helpless, frustrated, confused, dazed, angry, andextremely anxious. McDermott, Duffy, and McGuinness (2004) noted that evidence of these dis-

tresses has been more noticeable in adolescent victims than adults. The occurrence and aftermath

of these disasters have left many adolescents victims struggling to restore the fractured versions

Address correspondence to Lakisha Mearidy-Bell, College of Social Sciences, University of Phoenix, 2431 S. Acadian

Thruway, Baton Rouge, LA 70808, USA. E-mail: drmearidybell@email.phoenix.edu

536

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ADOLESCENT VICTIMS OF NATURAL DISASTERS 537

of their former lives, which included the loss of their homes and communities, death of parentsor relatives as a result of the disaster, divorce, illness, and the usual assortment of life transitions.

Although it has been more than 40 years since crisis intervention was first introduced in the

United States after the Boston Coconut Grove fire, very few efforts have been made to improve

the behavioral consequences of these disasters (Lima & Gittlemen, 2004). Kim, Conger, Elder,and Lorenz (2003) suggested that natural disasters are lived experiences that can inflict physical

discomfort or hardship in a person’s life. Lived experiences are life events that have a final

outcome of something that has inflicted physical discomfort or hardship in a person’s life (Amiel-

Lebigre, Lacalmontie, & Menard, 2002; Kim et al., 2003). As new disasters loom in the future,it is important to understand its consequences on the people affected—especially adolescents.

According to ongoing research, the imminent danger of a natural disaster is likely to be faced

by many more individuals in the future. Additional research is necessary to seek new knowledge

to establish that behaviorism must expand its practical scope to consider the responses of howthese disasters impact the lives of adolescent victims and institute improved methods for natural

disaster intervention (Cohan & Cole, 2002; Fivush, Sales, Goldberg, Bahrick, & Parker, 2004).

Gelman and Mirabito (2005) suggest that previous studies lack evidence in explaining how these

types of experiences are likely to result in adverse behavioral changes among adolescent victimsof natural disasters. Exposure to a natural disaster event may likely place adolescents at risk

for long-term physical impairment or variations in behavior due to changes in their environment

and sensitivity to stressors later on in life (Meaney, 2001). Behaviorism helps to identity how a

particular stimulus can be paired with a specific behavior in humans (Tuner, 1996).This theoretical perspective provides an understanding as to how a person can be influenced

to do rather than verbally state. Keizer (2005) explored the behavioral changes of natural disaster

victims in the hopes of better understanding what types of approaches and methods are used to dealwith such an event. In order to broaden the scope of natural disaster intervention, it is imperative

to assimilate the behaviorism on lived experiences with crisis and public service intervention as

it relates to adolescents.

Approaches to dealing with lived experiences among adolescent victims of natural disasters aregreatly limited because the lack of the behavioral implications included in crisis and public service

intervention (Burke, Borus, Burns, Millstein, & Beasley, n.d.; Durkin, Khan, Davidson, Zaman,

& Stein, 1993). Behavioral implications are identified as the involvement of behaviors as a con-

sequence or natural inference (Connelly, 2004). When a natural disaster occurs, the result is oftenthat the victims are stripped of their normal environment, causing them to experience devastations

such as the loss of a home, death of a parent or relative, illnesses, loss of friends, and loss of or

severe reduction in resources. While adults and children survive these types of devastating events,

adolescents tend to experience difficulty in the future as a result of their previous exposure to anatural disaster; after exposure to such a disaster, adolescents may experience difficulty dealing

with additional life events as they move forward with their lives (Ellis, Jackson, & Boyce, 2006).

Carothers, Borkowski, and Whitman (2006) wrote that exposure to life events (i.e., day-to-day

hassles of going to school, parental separation, poor grades, suspension, terminated friendships,increased absences, and death of a loved one) after a natural disaster plays an important role in

how well children adjust to their environment. Based on the Notre Dame Adolescent Parenting

Project, children are more prone to experience a crisis in their lifetime than adults; thus developingresistance, resilience, and survival methods in responding to such events in their environment that

are likely to have critical meaning (Whitman, Borkowski, Keogh, & Weed, 2001). A growing atten-

tiveness has also been given to the behavioral changes of natural disaster victims. Constructing and

implementing models and approaches to increase knowledge in understanding lived experiencesand behavioral changes among adolescent victims of natural disasters will assist communities and

advance public service in disaster intervention (Carothers et al., 2006; Cryder, Kilmer, Tedeschi,

& Calhoun, 2006; Evans & Oehler-Stinnett, 2006).

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LITERATURE REVIEW

A natural disaster is an ecological phenomenon that occurs without warning or notice and requires

immediate external assistance from human beings to address the needs of its victims (Galambos,

2005). Previous literature has addressed how natural disasters can threaten the homeostasis of an

adolescent’s environment as well as influence how he or she reacts physically to lived experiencesin response to such destruction (Gaffney, 2006; Galambos, 2005; Myer & Moore, 2006; Norris,

2006). However, when considering appropriate assessments and interventions for adolescents who

are victims of natural disasters, it is important for researchers to acquire the behavioral perspectivein recognizing that adolescents, especially those who are victims of any disaster, have unique needs

and respond differently than adults.

This is because adolescents are naturally dependent and tend to be at risk of facing parental

stressors or becoming orphaned as a result of exposure to a natural disaster. This literature reviewprovides an understanding of the need for knowing how the adolescent population deals with

natural disasters and why their behaviors are likely to be a result of the lived experiences after a

disaster event. Berliner, Hyman, Thomas, and Fitzgerald (2003) posited that adolescents represent

a high percentage of the populace in many countries most recently affected by natural disasters.Those who are victims of natural disasters continue to face moderate life disruptions after a

natural disaster and during important times in their lives, such as attending school and developing

relationships with their peers. However, there is a unique group of adolescent victims who face

additional lived experiences after a natural disaster event such as death of family members, friends,teachers, and others, especially while they are in the process of being displaced from their homes

and communities. Encountering these types of events, in addition to a disaster occurrence, is known

to place adolescent victims in vulnerable states that likely influence their response mechanisms.

Adolescent victims who deal with lived experiences after a natural disaster and in conjunctionwith the normal tasks of development underscore the need for awareness to their behavioral health,

particularly when considering appropriate responses to their post-disaster experience (Berliner

et al., 2003). One of the largest problems existing during post-disaster reconstruction is the abilityto assess the behavioral deficiencies among adolescent victims within the capacity of providing

such appropriate and needed care (Komesaroff & Sundram, 2006). Although this perspective is

keen for identifying trends, it does not view an adolescent’s association to natural disasters as a

critical factor in the behavioral developmental course of an adolescent’s experience. The increasingcomplications of natural disasters are embedded in the interplay of social, cultural, and economic

factors within a community’s environment. Also, the complications of these factors are likely to

increase the vulnerability of adolescents in their surroundings, thus making it difficult for them

to deal with lived experiences after a disaster occurrence.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Behaviorism

Early behaviorism was intended to interpret behavior as a type of response and objectively monitor

how organisms respond as a result of a particular stimulus. Behaviorism was first introducedthrough the works of Ivan Pavlov and B. F. Skinner in the early 1900s. Pavlov’s classical

conditioning later paved the way for many treatment applications focusing on behavior (Maguire,

2002). However, Skinner had a different set of views and motives that focused more on the

study of the conditioned behavior among human beings. Both authors contributed to the areas ofsocial work practice by formulating techniques that could be implemented to facilitate behavioral

change. Behaviorism sought to distinguish responses from external stimuli and influence change,

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ADOLESCENT VICTIMS OF NATURAL DISASTERS 539

promote, or reinforce learned behaviors (Maguire, 2002; Skinner, 1938; Turner, 1996). Historically,research has shown how theoretical frameworks can assist in explaining phenomenon, such as

natural disasters, and how it facilitates the behavior of human beings who were exposed to such

a devastating event (Norris, 2006; Overskeid, 2006). Likewise, theoretical frameworks such as

behaviorism can be addressed from many different therapeutic perspectives. According to Baeret al. (1968, 1987), behaviorism can be associated with the response of an unexpected event from

an applied behavioral, analytic, and technological perspective.

When focusing on this theoretical aspect, the characteristics of behaviorism focus more on the

importance of the behavioral response in contrast to its higher cognition (Keizer, 2005). In earlyresearch, behaviorism was used to understand the responses of early childhood special education.

According to Strain and McConnell (1992), behaviorism was criticized in regard to its ability to

distinguish behaviors that were related to the developmental delays and disabilities among children.

However, research has addressed how the evolution of behavior has now become more focusedon empirical and theoretical approaches with an integration of scientific sociology that lies in the

phenomenological orientation (Malone, 2003; Norris, 2006). This result of behaviorism formulated

many different behavioral assessments that were designed to collect information about various

antecedents, behaviors, and consequences in order to appropriately distinguish the function of thebehavior (Gresham, Watson, & Skinner, 2001). To better understand how a person responds to an

event, behaviorism interprets the origin of a particular problem as being learned to the context or

situation.

According to Malone (2003) and Overskeid (2006), behaviorism was associated with thebelief that a person can extendedly respond to a particular stimulus even after the extinction

of the stimulus or when the stimulus has passed and also when the response is likely to become

maladaptive or inappropriate in later situations. Behaviorism is designed to address areas of variousbehaviors intended for change, which includes undesirable overt behaviors, poor responding

mechanisms, fear, anxiety, and so forth. Behaviorism is built in the context of pragmatism.

This deals with how a person responds to something appropriately. Behaviorism is not seen

in the context of the unconscious or repression; however, it is associated with the change ofunderlying social dynamics within its interventions. In explaining a phenomenon, behaviorism

views a particular problem as simply the problem. Nevertheless, the problem becomes the target

focus of change.

The philosophical paradigm to behaviorism has not gone unchallenged; literature showed thatthere is a recommendation for research to seek to incorporate behaviorism in all therapeutic envi-

ronments. The philosophical paradigm of behaviorism is based on Skinner’s radical behaviorism,

which can be traced back to the days of Darwin, Romanes, Morgan, and Thorndike (Skinner, 1938).

These philosophers delved into the concern of a person experiencing consequences of maladaptivebehaviors. Skinner adopted the definition of experiencing consequences of maladaptive behaviors.

Skinner adopted the definition of behaviorism as the relationship between the stimuli and the

response. Skinner believed that the stimulus was the crucial component of the behavior theory

(Harzem, 2004; Moxely, 2005; Strain & McConnell, 1992).There are two major assumptions identifying the philosophical paradigm. The first assumption

suggests that reinforced behavior is identified as a contingent on a response. Second, the interaction

between an organism and its environment is based on the occurrence of a response, the responseitself, and reinforcing consequences. These assumptions supported Skinner’s theory that the

relationship between a stimulus and a response creates a behavior. Skinner tested this theory

with the use of operant formulations of two paired reflexes. These assumptions paved the way for

behaviorism and the ability to acknowledge a response based on an external stimulus as well asexplore the interaction between an organism and its environment. In the current climate, interaction

between a stimulus and response behaviorism continues to be explored (Harzem, 2004; Moxley,

2005; Strain & McConnell, 1992).

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540 L. MEARIDY-BELL

The epistemological perspective to behaviorism offers a scientific approach to discover therealities of the behaviors through personal experiences. The goal of this study is to obtain an under-

standing of the lived experiences and behavioral changes of adolescent victims of natural disasters.

Utilizing a specific methodology (which is a subfield of the epistemological perspective), behaviors

are measured as to the nature of cause and effect. The epistemological perspective tells us how weknow what we know about a person’s behavior. Additionally, this perspective explores the possibil-

ity and desirability of the behaviors from an objective or subjective point of view, thus addressing

issues of causality, validity, and generalizability (Patton, 2002; Rubin & Babbie, 2001). The onto-

logical perspective of behaviorism explores the belief about the nature of the behaviors as to implywhat is considered reality. There are two types of ontological approaches: realist versus relativities.

In the relativist approach (similar to the constructivist method), researchers seek to capture

the different experiences of problematic behaviors among individuals by conducting interviews or

experiments or performing observations in order to examine multiple realities of perception as tothe cause and effect of their behavior(s). The objective of the realistic approach is to determine or

to consider what is—right or—true based on a person’s perceptions (Patton, 2002). In the realistic

approach (constructionist perspective), researchers would assume that a person’s behavior is not

based on the direct access to a singular, constant, and fully predictable external reality. However,the understanding of the cause and effect of a person’s behavior would be explained by what is

contextually embedded within them. Additionally, the notion of what is true becomes the evidence

of the sophisticated constructors and not the objective reality of the behavior (Patton, 2002).

The axiological perspective implies the importance of the researcher and the participant’svalues being excluded from the research or being important to the topic at hand. In this case,

behaviors could be explored through the observation approach, thus excluding the researchers and

participant’s values from the study, and providing an objective outcome as to the cause and effect.However, behaviors could also be explored through the interviewing methods that incorporate

the researcher’s and participant’s perceptions of the cause and effect. Finally, the methodological

approaches deal with various kinds of data and design methods that are conducive to measure

the purpose of the behaviors as well as the consequences affect by them (Patton, 2002; Rubin &Babbie, 2001).

Natural disasters have a profound environmental effect that causes devastating and life-altering

tragedies that can affect the life course of adolescent victims. Studies have shown that there

are many experiences that can propel adolescents into fractured versions of their former lives,including death of a parent, divorce, illness, and the unusual sorts of life transitions (Bonanno,

2004; Skinner, Edge, Altman, & Sherwood, 2003). Nevertheless, loss can increase the complexity

of an adolescent’s ability to restore pre-crisis constancy within his or her environment as he or

she begins to deal with lived experiences after the nature of the crisis in response and seeksto resolve various life situations. Natural disasters and the collective grief experienced by so

many adolescents raised many difficult questions regarding their behavioral health, challenging

everything about an adolescent’s behavioral response. This situation is especially problematic

as these events caused loss in nearly every aspect of the adolescents’ lives, including death anddestruction of homes and communities followed by the forced migration to alien communities and

family separation. The powerful destruction brought by these disasters leaves many adolescents

without homes and other resources. Additionally, some of their families, relatives, and friendshave also been sacrificed because of a disaster event (Gaffney, 2006; Galambos, 2005; Ripley &

Kluger, 2006).

Unlike these recent tragedies, there have been other unpredictable catastrophes such as earth-

quakes, tornadoes, floods, and mudslides that were not invited into a national spotlight. In fact,the post-disaster aftereffects may take people decades to acknowledge their concerns and learn

to adapt and respond accordingly. The behavioral impact adolescents experience can range from

mild to moderate to severe for many months, even years (Madrid and Grant, 2008).

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Methodology

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to gather lived experiences of 15 adolescents

who endured a natural disaster and to examine how these adolescents link their behavioral

changes to their survival of the natural disaster event. Lived experiences are life events that

have a final outcome of something that has inflicted physical discomfort or hardship in a person’slife (Amiel-Lebigre et al., 2002; Kim et al., 2003). The scope of lived events will range from

day-to-day hassles to death of a family member. This qualitative study utilized phenomenological

methods to discover themes of behavior changes in adolescent victims of natural disasters with

the goal of providing new knowledge for practitioners and public service workers working withthis population. This study was designed to integrate data collected from personal, face-to-face

interviews of the adolescent victims, develop themes from the data, and collect evidence into

themes of behavior changes.

The research questions were what are the lived experiences of adolescent victims after a naturaldisaster and how do adolescents describe their behavioral changes on lived experiences after a

natural disaster? A phenomenological study guided the research questions. Patton (2002) states

that phenomenological studies attempt to capture the essence of human experiences based on theindividual’s perspective of the participants in the study. Phenomenology is a qualitative research

method developed by Husserl (1962) and is uniquely designed to assist the phenomenologist in giving

voice based on the investigation of a human experience and behavior (Newman, 2006). This study pro-

vided an opportunity to address the individual experiences of adolescent victims of natural disasters.Behavioral patterns are viewed as a form of reaction that can objectively examine the response

of a human experience as a result of a stimulus (Maguire, 2002; Turner, 1996). Maguire and Turner

stated that distinguished responses can address behaviors from external stimuli as they related to

influencing change, promoting, or reinforcing learned behaviors. In relation to a stimulus, behaviorhas a cause-effect relationship in which one responds to the other. Lived experiences have long

been suspected to be the cause of behavioral problems in children (Durkin et al., 1993). Clearly

defined events such as natural disasters can be distinguished from the effects of an adolescent’s

behavior because they can occur independently from the behavior, and the timing as it relates tothe behavior is unambiguous.

Natural disasters can take various forms: hurricanes, tornadoes, flash floods, firestorms, earth-

quakes, volcano eruptions, tsunamis, and mudslides. There are typical responses to such disaster

experiences among adolescent victims. Although these distresses can be seen in adolescents afterthe occurrences of such disasters, the prevalence of these disasters has left adolescents with many

distresses that have been linked to behavioral effects. However, there is a percentage of adolescents

who have survived these types of events and continue to show behavioral problems long afterthe event has occurred (Block et al., 1956; Lacy, 1972; Milne, 1977; Perry & Perry, 1959). A

qualitative phenomenological study (Patton, 2002) allows for in-depth information to emerge from

the data that are explored and described.

Many research studies in the area of lived experiences use the phenomenological approachas a guide for understanding human experience (Creswell, 2003). Likewise, this study employs

the phenomenological approach to examine the phenomena and to isolate the experience from the

world in which it occurred. Patton (2002) stated that researchers utilizing this qualitative approach

will obtain the ability to further dissect the phenomenon, define, and analyze its elements andessential structure. After these approaches have been followed, the research study will be guided

by the additional established qualitative methods.

Research Design

Behaviorism was utilized to understand the behavioral changes for survival on lived experiences

among adolescent victims after a natural disaster. This study used Husserl’s phenomenological

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research design (Patton, 2002). This method is methodical and systematic and offers criticalcriteria of science that produce a methodology that will assist in identifying, describing, and

understanding the behavioral characteristics, essence, and patterns (Creswell, 2003; Patton, 2002).

Patton proposes that this method is the most suitable approach to studying the impact of lived

experiences on behavior because it has the potential of identifying the behavioral processes thatpeople encounters as they experience life events.

Phenomenology calls for a descriptive exploration of lived experiences and behaviors (Berg,

2006). This study was methodologically important in using this approach because it illustrated

how interview methods provide access to the participant’s life experiences that are difficult toobserve when they occur. Gall, Borg, and Gall (2003) contended that qualitative research can be

conducted through participant interaction only and between the researcher and participants in the

study. Utilizing a phenomenological method best serves as the alternative and traditional approach

to describing and emphasizing how the participants’ perspective is central to the research study(Patton, 2002). The goal of this study was to obtain an understanding of the lived experiences

and behavioral changes of adolescent victims of natural disasters. The researcher identified as

accurately as possible the most comprehensive description of the individual interviews, themes,

and essence of the data collected (Berg, 2006). The researcher utilized interview research questionsto capture and elicit the descriptions of individual’s lived experiences framed after a natural disaster

occurrence.

Questions will be the center of this research methodology, with the design following Patton’s

(2002) phenomenological studies. The formal design of this study consisted of an analysis ofthe participant’s response to each interview. The focus of the interview questions is to collect

lived experiences of the participants that are related to collectively frame behavioral changes for

their survival after a natural disaster. Follow-up questions assisted in probing the reasons whyparticipants chose their answers to specific questions. Follow-up questions enriched the data,

offering the manifestation of new patterns and themes of behaviors.

The phenomenological study was designed to assist in describing the impact of behavioral

changes for survival among adolescent victims after a natural disaster. To address the researchquestions, individual interviews were conducted for data collection. Each participant completed

a demographic questionnaire as well as individual interviews. An interview guide assisted in

relating the research questions to the interview questions. This interview guide provided a list

of questions or concerns to be explored during the course of an interview (Patton, 2002). Theresearcher prepared a list of questions based on literature review to ensure that the same basic

lines of inquiry for the study were pursued with each person interviewed. The intent of this guide

was to provide a subject area within which the researcher is free to explore and document the

experiences of adolescent victims to behavioral changes. The interview questions in this studysought to obtain an understanding of the lived experiences and behavioral changes of adolescent

victims of natural disasters.

Sampling

The sample size consists of 15 adolescents of a total population of 20, ranging in age from 12

to 17 years and victims of a natural disaster experience. In the qualitative paradigm, purposive

sampling was utilized to enhance the understanding of the selected participants in the study,and to discover cases that are profound with information that aid the researcher in obtaining

information-rich cases. Information-rich cases are cases that enhance knowledge and learning by

providing an immense amount of information regarding the essential importance of the research

study. In qualitative research, the researcher seeks to obtain as many information-rich cases aswill provide an in-depth understanding of the needs, interests, and incentives of a small number of

carefully selected participants rather than obtain standardized information from a large, statistically

represented sample of a population.

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Purposive sampling was implemented by selecting volunteer adolescents who met the identi-fiable criteria of experiencing a natural disaster in order to be deemed a natural disaster victim.

Also known as criterion sampling, each participant in the study met the predetermined criteria of

importance to ensure quality. The predetermined criterion of importance was based on criterion

characteristics that are routinely identified for an in-depth qualitative analysis of the study. Thepredetermined criterion questions were developed based on existing literature. The predetermined

criterion, demographic, and interview questions were reviewed by several licensed professional

counselors and social workers in the area of natural disasters.

According to Patton (2002), the qualitative paradigm utilizes small participant samples be-cause of the depth of information that is sought from each participant in the study. Developing

an appropriate sample size for a qualitative study serves the research questions in the study.

Purposive sampling utilizes the grounded concept of selecting information-rich cases to enlighten

the questions under investigation (Patton, 2002). Additionally, probing or follow-up questionsseek to enrich the participant responses to accumulate additional information (Creswell, 2003;

Patton, 2006). Information and instructions regarding the study were provided to all parents, legal

caretakers, and adolescent volunteers for review and consent. Once the parents or legal guardians

of the interested adolescent volunteers responded to the request, each volunteer participant wasprescreened to determine whether they are deemed a natural disaster victim and have the compe-

tence to participate in the interview.

To collect this sample, every adolescent victim was asked to participate in a volunteer study.

The researcher screened everyone and determined those who desire to participate. This allowedthe researcher to obtain a sample large enough to account for attrition. After establishing the

criterion sample for the study, all participants along with their parent or legal guardian received

and reviewed an informed consent and assent with the researcher to secure understanding of thepurpose of the study. Informed consent and assent were presented in written form and discussed

orally by the researcher with each participant and his or her parent or legal caretaker prior to the

facilitation of each interview.

Data Collection

The purpose of this phenomenology study was to obtain an understanding of the lived experiences

and behavioral changes among 15 adolescent victims of natural disasters. This study explored(1) lived experiences, (2) exposure to natural disasters, and (3) behavioral changes among adoles-

cent victims. The research questions addressed in this study were framed in relation to what are

the lived experiences of adolescent victims after a natural disaster and how do adolescents describe

their behavioral changes on lived experiences after a natural disaster? Responses to informationregarding how adolescents experience a natural disaster as it relates to their behavioral changes

typically come from their parents, legal caretaker, or professionals (Cryder et al., 2006; Gaffney,

2006). No studies were found that addressed how lived experiences or behavioral changes are

described among adolescent victims of natural disasters.

Demographics

Fifteen adolescent victims (seven males and eight females) assigned to an agency for adolescentvictims of natural disasters participated in the study. Participants ranged from 12 to 17 years of

age, with a mean age between 16 and 17 years. All of the participants were students in grades

that ranged from 7 to 12 and resided in Louisiana for a period of 15 years or less. The majority

of the participants’ parents were either married or separated. All participants had experienced atleast one natural disaster, and majorities were relocated from their district home to the East Baton

Rouge Parish community in the southern Louisiana area because of a natural disaster event.

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544 L. MEARIDY-BELL

Other participants were relocated to West Baton Rouge and Jefferson Parish area of southernLouisiana because of a natural disaster event. The majority of the participants reported experienc-

ing a hurricane as the most recent natural disaster event with little reporting experiencing a storm

or tornado.

RESULTS

Emerging Thematic Categories of Individual Participants

This section identifies the thematic categories developed from the themes and patterns recognized

in the interviews. Each thematic category is addressed in a sequence format that includes theelements that make up that category. Likewise, this entails important pattern types (such as positive

and negative behavioral changes) that are essential to the factors identified in each category. Quotes

taken from the participant’s interviews are included as examples in the text to elucidate the thematic

categories and the prevalent subthemes addressed under each category. The participants are givenfictitious names and assigned numbers to mark their name and rank in the study.

Thematic Category 1: Description of Behavioral Changes

Through the semi-structured open-end interview questions with each of the 15 participants, the

researcher noted, coded, and categorized many references that identified description of behavioral

changes into the first thematic category. The first thematic category is relevant to the centralresearch question “How do adolescents describe their behavioral changes to lived experiences

after a natural disaster?” Table 1 shows seven subthemes identified by the researcher that are

placed under the first thematic category.

Of the seven subthemes identified under the thematic category of adolescent victim’s descriptionof behavioral changes after a natural disaster, four themes emerged with a higher prevalence

(93%) than others: (1) isolation and withdrawal, (2) increased arguments with family and friends,

(3) avoid relationships, and (4) over-protectiveness. These results include participant’s responseswith regard to how they interpret behavioral changes in themselves after experiencing a natural

disaster event.

For example, answering how she describes behavioral changes after a natural disaster, Donna

noted that she now “withdraws herself from her friends and family. I now stay in my room anddon’t go out and play like I used to. I just stay in my room and that’s it.” Mark defines behavioral

TABLE 1

Behavioral Changes Reported by Adolescent Victims after a

Natural Disaster (N D 15)

Content of Coded Text

No. to Offer

This Experience

Isolation, social withdrawal 14

Increased arguments with family/friends 14

Avoid relationships 14

Over protectiveness 14

Excessive eating 10

Excessive sleeping 10

Fighting 7

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ADOLESCENT VICTIMS OF NATURAL DISASTERS 545

changes after a natural disaster as an action: “You do what you got to do to survive in this world.So, to be safe, I avoid making friends. I lost two good ones when the hurricane moved us.” Carl

defined his behavioral changes in terms of over-protectiveness: “I watch my sisters all the time.

I’m scared to let them go anywhere because we lost my grandmother to the hurricane. I keep them

next to me everywhere mom needs us to go. It’s gets like that when a storm hits.” Kara definesbehavioral responses in terms of increased arguments: “I fuss with my friends all the time now.

We used to talk in peace before the hurricane and now this! It’s like we no longer understand

each other and we all went through the same Gustav!”

Of the four subthemes demonstrating a response rate of 93%, one expresses conduct, twoexpresses action, and three expresses a routine. It is interesting to note that these four responses

were 40% more prevalent in the participants’ overall responses than the next common subthemes

of behavior responses, which had a prevalence of 66%.

The next set of subthemes that emerged with a second-higher prevalence reported than otherswere (1) excessive eating (67% prevalence) and (2) excessive sleeping (67% prevalence). These

subthemes expressed not only a particular behavior change but how behavior can increase as

a result of life experience. Neil addressed behavioral change in terms of an increase in his

appetite:

You know, before all the hurricane mess started, I was in good shape. But then, Hurricane Gustav

changed my life. I never knew how much food can run out when you have nowhere to go and eat

because everything is closed. I started eating more after two weeks of no transportation or stores to

shop at.

Frank stated “I noticed that I began eating more after Hurricane Gustav. Every time my momhears a storm is brewing in the gulf she begins to clean the icebox by cooking more.” Donna

recalled “It’s like; I have started eating more since we have been going through all these disasters.

When Gustav hit : : : we ran out of food in the icebox. My mom started taking us to our neighbors

: : : and I guess : : : that’s when I started eating more.”Kara had found that her eating habits increased after her natural disaster experience and directly

stated so in the interview. In the same interview, Kara addressed how she has gained more weight

since experience of Hurricane Gustav that has put her at risks for being diagnosed as morbidly

obese. She was given a diagnosis that she never had before her natural disaster experience andhas to take medication that focuses on controlling her appetite. Kara recounted,

It was like, before Hurricane Gustav, I was a size six, somewhere between six and eight. After the

hurricane, it seems like my nerves got bad or something because all I do is eat night and day. We

had very little food at home two weeks after the hurricane and my mom could not go to the stores

because they were still closed. When the neighborhood got straight and that store opened up on the

corner, I was so glad to get something to eat that was not canned food. I ate night and day, and I

still do it to this day. And then, like, I started gaining all this weight and now I am a size 16. The

doctor said that I am obese and if I keep it up, I will be given that morbidly obese title. He gave me

medication to monitor my appetite. So that’s helping me a little.

Sue strongly posited her experience, stating,

Man, I’m telling you, it’s like, when a hurricane takes food out of your mouth for days, you will

be thankful when you get something in your hands. I have never gone through a hurricane that shut

down all the stores in our neighborhood and left me and my family with no place to shop. It gets

bad when you can’t cook anything because the food is spoiling. As soon, man I tell you, as soon as

my neighborhood was up and running, my mother bought food for days! I ate myself crazy : : : and

still do!

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546 L. MEARIDY-BELL

On the other end of the spectrum, one participant reported losing her appetite because of theirovereating experience after a disaster event. Ann commented,

Man, I come from a big family. So when Gustav hit, the food spoiled. My mom made us eat all the

food in the refrigerator first because we had no power. So I think : : : that’s when I started overeating.

But now, I have no love for food because she kept stuffing us when the lights were out. She didn’t

want the food to spoil. So now, I feel like, man, I lose my appetite every time I see food. Yeah, that’s

why I don’t eat much now.

This variety of behavioral changes demonstrates the richness of perspectives that a qualitativemethodology aims to achieve and explicitly reveals the lived experiences that occur from the

participant’s viewpoint.

Excessive sleeping (67% prevalence) was reported as another increase in a behavioral change

among adolescent victims after a natural disaster event. Bill noted,

Since hurricane Gustav, I have been sleeping more now than before. When that hurricane hit, we

didn’t get any sleep for two weeks because a tree fell on our house. After that big clean up, I noticed

that I have been sleeping more now than ever. I used to stay up until my mom says its bedtime. Now

I beat my parents to sleep. I guess the hurricanes can affect you.

Janet reported excessive sleeping in terms of regression:

I can’t stand dealing with my new home, so I sleep more. It helps me not to think why we moved

here, you know, because of the hurricane. I noticed that I naturally do this all the time now. I guess

it’s my way of escaping what I have to put up with now.

However, there were other participants who cited a slightly more prevalent reason to express their

excessive sleeping.Carl stated,

I am now the man of the house since my dad got hurt in the hurricane. I sleep all the time because

everyone depends on me to do everything around the house. I get tired a lot now, and that agitates

me. So I sleep more so I can help my family.

Jake also recalled,

After Hurricane Gustav, I didn’t sleep much for two weeks because we had to clean all those trees

around the house. And when the shed fell, man, I never thought I would get any sleep. Now I sleep

more than before. That hurricane really changed my life and my mom’s.

Taking these subthemes identified in this thematic category and those reported with a higher

prevalence were three to seven times greater than the participants who reported the next set of

subthemes.Other subthemes, such as fighting (47% prevalence) represented negative behavioral changes

for the participants. Fighting and the participants who expressed this behavior (47% prevalence)

generally had to conceptualize through an external perception that this behavior results in se-

rious consequences. Participants did not want to be bullied in a new community, which wasa motivator to fighting. When talking about his friends and how it relates to fighting, Mark

stated,

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ADOLESCENT VICTIMS OF NATURAL DISASTERS 547

I don’t want them to know. I don’t tell them where I come from. I don’t want to be the new kid who

gets picked on because he’s new. So I be the bully, so they won’t bully me. Man, this gets me in

trouble all the time. But I gotta survive, you know.

Neil also explains why he gets into fights:

My new neighborhood has territories, you see. Where I stay now, they call us top dawgs. So as dawgs,

we fight. Some people tried me when I first moved here after Hurricane Gustav, but I showed them.

I’m no softy. But I got suspended for doing that too. Two times! That’s bad to me.

Thematic Category 2: Identifying Lived Experiences after a Natural Disaster

The next thematic category was developed by the researcher in relation to identifying lived

experiences among adolescent victims after a natural disaster. This thematic category is relevant to

the central research question “What are the lived experiences of adolescent victims after a natural

disaster?” In order to recognize these lived experiences, there must be an understanding that inthis qualitative study, the events are identified as they relate to the participants’ life experiences

they continue to endure after a natural disaster. The majority of the participants shared similar

perspectives about their lived experiences (see Table 2).For example, Table 2 reveals that 87% of the participants experience “moving to a new home”

after a natural disaster. Neil recalled, As for my experience, me and my family had to pack

our stuff and move to my grandparent’s house because they said Gustav was a Category 3 and

growing. Man, we had to leave most of our stuff behind and find another place for us to live.” Ina similar experience, Bill recounted his lived experience as an unexpected situation: “The police

dude knocked on our door and told us that it was best for us to get out our neighborhood. So we

got some things and went to live with my aunt and uncle. We got stuck there because the roof

fell in our house after Gustav!” Tina explained her lived experience as being placed in a difficultsituation: “My parents are not together, so I was sent to live with my dad after the hurricane. I

do not like my new home. Moving was my worst experience. I had to leave my best friend and

cousins and that was very hard for me to do.”

The second subtheme that emerged with the same higher prevalence (87%) than others was“changing schools.” For example, explaining how he encountered this lived experience; Frank

TABLE 2

Reported Lived Experiences of Adolescent Victims after a

Natural Disaster (N D 15)

Content of Coded Text

No. to Offer

This Experience

Moving to a new home 13

Changing schools 13

Mother or father lost job 13

Serious illness/injury of family members 12

Losing a close friend 12

Increased absence of parent at home 12

Change in parent’s financial status 12

Trouble with teacher(s) 10

Trouble with brother or sister 9

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548 L. MEARIDY-BELL

communicated “I was sent to a new school after hurricane Gustav. I don’t like being there becauseat my old school I used to attend, we was way ahead in our work.” Likewise, Janet noted that

she was sent to a new school because of a hurricane; “It’s like, I still can’t adjust, and I been left

that middle school. I miss my old school where I grew up. Oh well, can’t go back because the

hurricane took my neighborhood away.” Jake also expressed that “the hurricane made our schoolcave in, so we had to move to a new one. This was big for me because some kids act like they

don’t want you to go there. It’s my school now!”

Likewise, the third subtheme that emerged with a similar higher prevalence (87%) reported by

the participants in the study was “mother or father lost job.” The results of the theme included theparticipants’ responses with regard to how they interpreted their parents losing their jobs after a

natural disaster. This subtheme was based solely on a natural disaster event that damaged many

businesses within the participant’s communities and not due to a declining economy. For example,

Lisa recounted, “My father worked for the grocery store down my street. Gustav crashed it in andmy father could not go back. It was crazy! I could only think how that store look like someone

tall just stepped on it!” Pete recalled, “My dad used to work at Six Flags and then he moved to

Shell. They closed down the side he was working at because it got flooded with water and oil.

My dad’s been home ever since. I guess he is waiting to go back. I don’t like him being homebecause all he do is fuss.”

Simultaneously, 40% of participants expressed that their parents’ job loss was temporary after

the natural disaster occurrence. This apparent incompatibility in the data is only superficial, as

the interviews were directed toward accounting for those parents of adolescent victims who losttheir jobs due to a natural disaster and were interpreted as such. These data identified the issue of

job loss; which did not include the participants’ parents relocating to another job or receiving a

new position in their current job due to their old position being cancelled or phased out becauseof economic issues. The participants interpreted the interview question as being directed toward

identifying only one parent losing his or her job after a natural disaster. However, it is unknown

whether any participants in the study had experienced both parents losing their job.

It is valuable to note that 80% of participants openly discussed being seriously ill or havingto deal with family members being injured after a natural disaster. Tina remembered, “Right after

Hurricane Gustav, my dad got injured working for FEMA and helping people move trees out of

their yards. Then I got sick because of the all the rain during that week. It was crazy because my

mom had to take care of both of us.”Pete recalled “I was only 10 when Gustav came, but I remembered my uncle got hurt when

he fell off of his roof. He was trying to cut the tree that fell on his house. He was hurt bad for a

long time. We had to go and take care of him.” Janet expressed dealing with the injury of family

members by witnessing the event first-hand, “I saw my dad get caught in the field. His tractorwas moving trees and debris from hurricane Gustav and it accidentally turned over on him.” Janet

addressed how this lived experience made her feel ill since witnessing her dad’s accident. She

began feeling more ill than she ever had before the natural disaster occurrence. Janet continued,

“Every time I think of how that tractor turned over on my dad, I get more and more ill. It’s likea bad dream that I am stuck with for life.”

Similarly, the participants also noted losing a close friend and the death of a family member

as a severe life-changing event. Janet stated, “I don’t understand how a hurricane can take peopleaway from you. But they do. My uncle died because of it. That was the worst day of my life.”

Donna stated, “I lost my friends because their parents left town for the hurricane and my friends

never came back. It’s like; it’s been hard for me to deal with that, because I like, lost two of my

very best friends.” Other subthemes with similar higher prevalence (80%) were increased absenceof parent at home and change in parent’s financial status. Participants who identified these two

subthemes perceived these lived experiences as a change in their lifestyle because of their parent’s

devotion to work and establishing some form of financial income suitable to meet the participant’s

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ADOLESCENT VICTIMS OF NATURAL DISASTERS 549

needs. Lisa addressed her mother’s increased absence at home in terms of being overworked atan understaffed hospital:

Since the hurricane, I have seen my mother work more at the hospital than ever. She claims that the

hurricanes make the economy suffer and they have to lay off at her job. This makes her work more

than ever because she has to cover everyone’s shift. I need my mom more at home.

Jake recalled similar experience of his parent’s increased absence at home; “With my parents

being separated, my mom has to work more to supplement her income. This makes it hard for

her to be home more.” Paula shares, “My father was just demoted from his job because of thehurricane. So : : : he now works for a lower pay and more hours. We never see him because

of his job.” Participants also expressed change in parent’s financial status (80% prevalence) as a

lived experience that occurred after a natural disaster. Frank commented, “These hurricanes got

everyone struggling. My dad had to go on a furlough after the hurricane and my mom was let gofrom her babysitting job. We hardly have any money now.”

Other subthemes that had a lesser prevalence reported than the first two sets were trouble with

teacher (67% prevalence) and trouble with brother or sister (60% prevalence). Of all subthemes

reported by participants and taking the examples of these and other lived experiences in thisthematic category into account, the prevalence of participants who noted moving into a new

home, changing schools, and experiencing a mother of father losing a job were two times greater

than any other lived experience after a natural disaster.

RELEVANT CONCLUSION

The results of this study highlighted to what extent lived experiences after a natural disaster

contribute to behavioral change among adolescent victims and clarified those natural disasterssuch as hurricanes, tornadoes, or severe weather storms can have an impact on how adolescent

survivors’ respond to lived experiences after the disaster has occurred. Subsequently, in order to

fully address the phenomenon of behavioral changes, there needs to be a venue where as public

services, human service programs, and adolescent victims are apprised of the findings of this studyand further research on the subject, in order that concerted efforts and programs are established to

address what lived experiences after a natural disaster can have on adolescent behavior outcomes.

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