Social Vulnerability Analysis

Vulnerability, or social vulnerability, can be defined by three core premises. The core premises are described as such: social vulnerability does not affect all people or communities equally; in any community, there are a whole host of varied impacts and carried behavioral responses, and there are observable and predictable patterns that demonstrate variation in vulnerability and risk exposure (Gerber, B. J., 2018). Similar to the Tierney assessment of vulnerability, he also asserts that risk reduction and resilience does not occur uniformly across all people and communities. Due to differences in social class, race, ethnicity, exposure and gender differences, everyone in various community's experience vulnerability in different ways (Tierney,

There is a need for a shift away from the focus of specific hazards and a call for strategic approaches to reducing vulnerabilities before hazardous events occur. Knowledge of potential hazards, whether it be the physical, economic, or environmental vulnerabilities must be known prior to any hazardous event. With this knowledge known, any hazard can be conquered by first responders and the government rather than assessing what went wrong after the event. Focusing on specific hazards is a difficult task, thus understanding the underlying vulnerabilities to infrastructure, hazardous material, or the economy are vital in risk management. Policy makers and first responders alike can use this information to prevent risk and hazardous events. A primary example of the importance of understanding the underlying vulnerabilities as opposed to a specific threat are the 9/11 attacks. In 2001, the nation was extremely vulnerable and did not have the proper measures in place to address damages to infrastructure, the economic impact of recovering from a large-scale attack, or the health hazards the attack created for first responders. Underlying vulnerabilities should first and foremost be addressed before focusing on a specific hazard, as with 9/11, no one knew the United States was vulnerable in many areas until after the