Application of ICT in effective crisis management: A systematic review

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5055/jem.0612

Keywords:

information and communication technology, crisis management, emergency management

Abstract

Introduction: Effective crisis management can reduce the costs and consequences of a crisis and has a significant impact on saving human lives in critical situations. Proper use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) can improve all crisis management phases and crisis communication cycles according to the needs of stakeholders. The purpose of this review article is to identify which ICTs have been used in effective crisis management and what managerial tasks they support.

Method: A systematic review was conducted based on PRISMA protocol. The investigated articles that have been published in English were all indexed in PubMed, Science Direct, IEEE, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases from 2005 to 2019. The keywords searched were “Crisis Management,” “Emergency Management,” “Information and Communication Technology,” and their synonyms.

Results: A total of 1,703 articles were retrieved, and 81 articles that met the inclusion criteria were retained. In terms of content, there were 54 case studies/review articles, 38 proposals, and seven prototypes among which 18 case studies and proposals were the same. According to surveys, 18 ICT tools and technologies have been used in effective crisis management with the purpose of supporting managerial tasks such as situation assessment, decision-making, coordination/command and control, communication with the public, and supply of basic services in order to enable crisis management and logistics.

Conclusion: This study showed that proper use of ICT can help crisis managers optimize their performance that will consequently result in effective crisis management and the reduction of casualties. In the crisis management cycle, several tools and technologies have been used for various purposes, however; some crisis managers’ tasks were still not taken into consideration sufficiently, and thus, some recommendations for further research in this field were provided.

Author Biographies

Mohammad Ali Fazeli, PhD

Department of Health Information Management and Technology, School of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Hamid Moghaddasi, PhD

Department of Health Information Management and Technology, School of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Azamossadat Hosseini, PhD

Department of Health Information Management and Technology, School of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Farkhondeh Asadi, PhD

Department of Health Information Management and Technology, School of Paramedical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Hassan Haghighi, PhD

Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

References

Qiu L, Du Z, Zhu Q, et al.: An integrated flood management system based on linking environmental models and disaster-related data. Environ Modell Soft. 2017; 91: 111-126. DOI: 10.1016/j.envsoft.2017.01.025.

Greene DM: Agency notification and mobilization. In Penuel KB, Statler M, Hagen R (eds.): Encyclopedia of Crisis Management. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2013: 1.

Lindell MK: Emergency management. In Bobrowsky PT (ed.): Encyclopedia of Natural Hazards. Dordrecht, Heidelberg, New York, London: Springer, 2013: 263-271.

Callahan J: Defining crisis and emergency. Crisis. 1994; 15: 164-171.

Al-Dahash H, Thayaparan M, Kulatunga U (eds.): Understanding the terminologies: Disaster, crisis and emergency. In Proceedings of the 32nd Annual ARCOM Conference, ARCOM 2016, 2016.

Baker D, Refsgaard K: Institutional development and scale matching in disaster response management. Ecol Econ. 2007; 63(2-3): 331-343. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2007.01.007.

Rosenthal U, Charles MT, Hart P: Coping with Crises: The Management of Disasters, Riots, and Terrorism. Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas Pub Limited, 1989. ISBN: 0398055971.

Boin A, Hart P: Organising for effective emergency management: Lessons from research 1. Aust J Pub Adm. 2010; 69(4): 357-371.

Johnson R: GIS Technology for Disasters and Emergency Management. An Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) White Paper, 2000.

Bennett D, Phillips BD, Davis E: The future of accessibility in disaster conditions: How wireless technologies will transform the life cycle of emergency management. Futures. 2017; 87: 122-132. DOI: 10.1016/j.futures.2016.05.004.

Wybo JL, Kowalski KM: Command centers and emergency management support. Saf Sci. 1998; 30(1-2): 131-138. DOI: 10.1016/S0925-7535(98)00041-1.

ACRIMAS: Aftermath Crisis Management System-of-Systems Demonstration Phase I, FP7: CORDIS|. Brussels: European Commission, 2014. Available at https://www.acrimas.eu/.

Claudia Berchtold LM, Sendrowski P, Grigoleit S: An integrated next generation preparedness programme for improving effective interorganisational response capacity in complex environments of disasters and causes of crises. European Union’s Horizon 2020 Innovation Programme, 2017: 16.

Bunker D, Smith S: Disaster management and community warning systems: Inter-organisational collaboration and ICT innovation. In PACIS 2009 Proceedings, 2009: 36.

Gray B, Weal M, Martin D: Social media and disasters: A new conceptual framework. In Tapia AH, Antunes P, Banuls VA, et al. (eds.): Proceedings of the ISCRAM 2016 Conference-13th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, 2016.

Leidner DE, Pan G, Pan SL: The role of IT in crisis response: Lessons from the SARS and Asian tsunami disasters. J Strategic Inform Syst. 2009; 18(2): 80-99. DOI: 10.1016/j.jsis.2009.05.001.

Malizia A, Astorga-Paliza F, Onorati T, et al.: Emergency alerts for all: An ontology based approach to improve accessibility in emergency alerting systems. In 5th International ISCRAM Conference, 2008.

Palen L, Liu SB (eds.): Citizen communications in crisis: Anticipating a future of ICT-supported public participation. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. San Jose, CA: ACM, 2007.

Pandey S, Tyagi V, Pathak K: Role of open source software and ICT in disaster management. Int J Sci Eng. 2013; 4(7): 2005-2013. Available at http://xploreijserorg/.

Sakurai M, Murayama Y: Information technologies and disaster management—Benefits and issues. Prog Disaster Sci. 2019; 2: 100012. DOI: 10.1016/j.pdisas.2019.100012.

Buttussi F, Chittaro L, Carchietti E, et al. (eds.): Using mobile devices to support communication between emergency medical responders and deaf people. In Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Human Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services. Lisbon, Portugal: ACM, 2010.

Choudhary P, Vyas RA: Critical study on disaster management and role of ICT in minimizing its impact. In Performance Management of Integrated Systems and Its Applications in Software Engineering. Berlin: Springer, 2020: 183-187.

Diaz P, Carroll J, Aedo I: Coproduction as an approach to technology- mediated citizen participation in emergency management. Fut Internet. 2016; 8(3): 41. DOI: 10.3390/fi8030041.

Guembour A, Nadira R: Role of communication and technology in crisis management. Eur J Eng Formal Sci. 2018; 2(2): 96-100.

Hosono N, Inoue H, Nakanishi M, et al. (eds.): Urgent mobile tool for hearing impaired, language dysfunction and foreigners at emergency situation. New York, NY: ACM, 2014.

Ito A, Yabe T, Tsunoda K, et al.: A study of optimization of IDDD (information delivery system for deaf people in a major disaster). In 2013 First International Symposium on Computing and Networking. Piscataway, NJ: IEEE, 2013: 422-428. DOI: 10.1109/CANDAR.2013.75.

Meissen U, Hardt M, Voisard A (eds.): Towards a general system design for community-centered crisis and emergency warning systems. In 11th International ISCRAM Conference, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA, 2014.

Pau LF, Simonsen P: Emergency messaging to general public via public wireless networks. Crisis Response and Management and Emerging Information Systems: Critical Applications. Pennsylvania: IGI Global, 2009: 188-200.

Chaturvedi A, Simha A, Wang Z: ICT infrastructure and social media tools usage in disaster/crisis management. In 2015 Regional Conference of the International Telecommunications Society (ITS): The Intelligent World: Realizing Hopes, Overcoming Challenges, Los Angeles, USA, 25-28th, 2015.

Grace R, Kropczynski J, Pezanowski S, et al.: Enhancing emergency communication with social media: Identifying hyperlocal social media users and information sources. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2018; 10(3): 20-41. DOI: 10.4018/IJISCRAM.2018070102.

Harrison SE, Johnson PA: Crowdsourcing the disaster management cycle. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2016; 8(4): 17-40. DOI: 10.4018/IJISCRAM.2016100102.

Jaeger PT, Shneiderman B, Fleischmann KR, et al.: Community response grids: E-government, social networks, and effective emergency management. Telecommun Policy. 2007; 31(10-11): 592-604. DOI: 10.1016/j.telpol.2007.07.008.

Kapucu N, Haupt B: Information communication technology use for public safety in the United States. Front Commun. 2016; 1: 8. DOI: 10.3389/fcomm.2016.00008.

Lang G, Benbunan-Fich R: The use of social media in disaster situations: Framework and cases. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2010; 2(1): 11-23. DOI: 10.4018/jiscrm.2010120402.

Latonero M, Shklovski I: Emergency management, twitter, and social media evangelism. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2011; 3(4): 1-16. DOI: 10.4018/jiscrm.2011100101.

Li L, Goodchild MF: The role of social networks in emergency management: A research agenda. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2010; 2(4): 48-58. DOI: 10.4018/jiscrm.2010100104.

Morris JT, Mueller JL, Jones ML: Use of social media during public emergencies by people with disabilities. Western J Emerg Med. 2014; 15(5): 567-574. DOI: 10.5811/westjem.2014.4.21274.

Wojciechowicz W, Zych J, Hołubowicz W: Information and communication technology and crisis management. Tech Sci Univ Warmia Mazury Olsztyn. 2012; 15(1): 101-110.

Jarso AW, Wario WG, Mwalili T, et al.: Influence of ICT systems on disaster management in selected organizations in manufacturing sector in Kenya. Int Acad J Inform Syst Technol. 2018; 2(1): 78-101.

Maity SK, Bandyopadhyay MN: Role of information and communication technology in natural disaster management in India. Int J Innov Practice Appl Res. 2017; 7(7): 45-48.

Mukhopadhyay B, Bhattacherjee B: Use of information technology in emergency and disaster management. Am J Environ Protect. 2015; 4(2): 101-104. DOI: 10.11648/j.ajep.20150402.15.

Malizia A, Onorati T, Diaz P, et al.: SEMA4A: An ontology for emergency notification systems accessibility. Expert Syst Appl. 2010; 37(4): 3380-3391. DOI: 10.1016/j.eswa.2009.10.010.

Onorati T, Malizia A, Diaz P, et al.: Modeling an ontology on accessible evacuation routes for emergencies. Expert Syst Appl. 2014; 41(16): 7124-7134.

Apvrille L, Tanzi T, Dugelay J-L: Autonomous drones for assisting rescue services within the context of natural disasters. In 31th URSI General Assembly and Scientific Symposium, URSI GASS 2014. Pennsylvania: IEEE, 2014: 1-4. DOI: 10.1109/URSIGASS.2014.6929384.

Cai G: Extending distributed GIS to support geo-collaborative crisis management. Geogr Inform Sci. 2005; 11(1): 4-14. DOI: 10.1080/10824000509480595.

Clement K: Curriculum design and development at the nexus of international crisis management and information systems. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2010; 2(3): 51-60. DOI: 10.4018/jiscrm.2010070104.

Dheeraj K: Emerging trends in information and communication technology in mine safety and disaster management. J Coal Sci Eng China. 2010; 16(3): 277-283. DOI: 10.1007/s12404-010-0311-6.

Keskin I, Karacameydan N, Tosun M, et al.: AYDES: An all-in-one solution for geospatial information technology based disaster management and decision support. In GeoInformation for Disaster Management Conference. Berlin: Springer, 2019: 61-86. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-05330-7_3.

Lal BS: In Rao KH, Rao PSS (eds.): Information and Communication Technology for Disaster Management. New Delhi: Serial Publications, 2008: 200-213. ISBN: 978-81-8387-214-0.

Levius S, Safa M, Weeks K: Use of information and communication technology to support comprehensive disaster management in the Caribbean countries. J Inform Technol Case Appl Res. 2017; 19(2): 102-112. DOI: 10.1080/15228053.2017.1333361.

Mishra MK, Jananidurga P, Siva S, et al.: Application of robotics in disaster management in land slides. Int J Sci Res Public. 2013; 3(3): 1-4.

Nikolova V, Zlateva P (eds.): Assessment of flood vulnerability using fuzzy logic and geographical information systems. In International Conference on Information Technology in Disaster Risk Reduction. Berlin: Springer, 2017.

Racˇek J, Ministr J: ICT support for emergency management. IDIMT 2012 - ICT Support for Complex Systems, 20th Interdisciplinary Information Management Talks. 2012; 38: 41-48.

Sehrawat A, Choudhury TA, Raj G: Surveillance drone for disaster management and military security. In International Conference on Computing, Communication and Automation (ICCCA). IEEE, 2017: 470-475. DOI: 10.1109/CCAA.2017.8229846.

Trnka J, Le Duc M, Sivertun A (eds.): Inter-organizational issues in ICT, GIS and GSD-mapping Swedish emergency management at the local and regional level. In Proceedings of the 2nd International ISCRAM Conference, Brussels, Belgium, 2005.

Unea H, Nakano T: Recent innovation of geospatial information technology to support disaster risk management and responses. In Proceedings of the International Cartographic Association. 2017: 117-121. DOI: 10.5194/ica-proc-1-117-2017.

Vyas T, Desai A: Information technology for disaster management. In Proceedings of National Conference on Computing for Nation Development: INDIACom–2007. New Delhi, India: Bharati Vidyapeeth’s Institute of Computer Applications and Management, 2007.

Jha RK, Kumar S, Madhav K: Wireless operating robot for disaster management. Afr J Comput ICT. 2015; 8(4): 1-10.

Ur Rahman M, Rahman S, Mansoor S, et al.: Implementation of ICT and wireless sensor networks for earthquake alert and disaster management in earthquake prone areas. Proc Comput Sci. 2016; 85: 92-99. DOI: 10.1016/j.procs.2016.05.184.

Chou T-Y, Yeh M-L, Chen YC, et al.: Disaster monitoring and management by the unmanned aerial vehicle technology. In Wagner W, Szekely B (eds.): ISPRS TC VII Symposium – 100 Years ISPRS. Vienna, Austria: Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS), 2010: 137-42.

Leonard S: Emerging trends in crisis management: Usability, earth observation and disaster management. In Holla K, Titko M, Ristvej J (eds.): Crisis Management-Theory and Practice. London: IntechOpen, 2018. DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.76636.

Fiedrich F, Burghardt P: Agent-based systems for disaster management. Commun ACM. 2007; 50(3): 41-42. DOI: 10.1145/1226736.1226763.

Nunavath V, Prinz A, Comes T: Identifying first responders information needs: Supporting search and rescue operations for fire emergency response. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2016; 8(1): 25-46. DOI: 10.4018/IJISCRAM.2016010102.

Carver L, Turoff M: Human-computer interaction: The human and computer as a team in emergency management information systems. Commun ACM. 2007; 50: 33-38. DOI: 10.1145/1226736.1226761.

Luraschi G, Vespe M: Smart Emergency Response System (smartERS)—The oil spill use case. In Agile 2015. Lisbon: Technische Universitat Dresden, 2015.

Ray PP, Mukherjee M, Shu L: Internet of things for disaster management: State-of-the-art and prospects. IEEE Access. 2017; 5: 18818-18835. DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2017.2752174.

Bergstrand F, Landgren J, Nulden U: Communicating location and geography in emergency response. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2016; 8(1): 47-64. DOI: 10.4018/ijiscram.2016010103.

Cai G, MacEachren AM, Brewer I, et al.: Map-mediated geocollaborative crisis management. In Kantor P, Muresan G, Roberts F, et al. (eds.): International Conference on Intelligence and Security Informatics (ISI). Atlanta, GA, USA: Springer, 2005: 429-435. DOI: 10.1007/11427995_39.

Collins LM, Powell JE, Dunford CE, et al.: Emergency information synthesis and awareness using e-SOS. In Fiedrich F, Van de Walle B (eds.): Proceedings of ISCRAM 2008-5th International Conference on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management, Washington, DC, USA, 2008.

Reddy MC, Paul SA, Abraham J, et al.: Challenges to effective crisis management: Using information and communication technologies to coordinate emergency medical services and emergency department teams. Int J Med Inform. 2009; 78(4): 259-269. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2008.08.003.

Bjerge B, Clark N, Fisker P, et al.: Technology and information sharing in disaster relief. PLoS One. 2016; 11(9): e0161783. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0161783.

Mung’Ou C: Use and effectiveness of ICT tools in disaster management: A case of Kenya red cross society. Afr J Educ Sci Technol. 2014; 2(1): 144-148.

Palen L, Hiltz SR, Liu SB: Online forums supporting grassroots participation in emergency preparedness and response. Commun ACM. 2007; 50(3): 54-58. DOI: 10.1145/1226736.1226766.

Pineda MVG: Pragmatic use of ICT for effective disaster management governance and participation. Int J eBusi eGovern Stud. 2009; 1(2): 15-25.

Gomez EA, Passerini K: Information and communication technologies (ICT) options for local and global communities in health-related crisis management. J Commun Inform. 2010; 6(2).

Fitriani S, Poppe RW, Chitu AG, et al.: A multimodal human-computer interaction framework for research into crisis management. In Van de Walle B, Burghardt P, Nieuwenhuis C (eds.): Proceedings of the 4th International ISCRAM Conference Delft. Netherlands: DECIS, 2007.

Yuan Y, Detlor B: Intelligent mobile crisis response systems. Commun ACM. 2005; 48: 95-98. DOI: 10.1145/1042091.1042097.

Seeger MW, Sellnow TL, Ulmer RR: Communication, organization, and crisis. Ann Int Commun Assoc. 1998; 21(1): 231-276.

Smart C, Vertinsky I: Designs for crisis decision units. Adm Sci Q. 1977; 22: 640-657.

Affeltranger B, Berger E, Peinel G, et al.: IT for risk and emergency management: Consolidating methodologies for user-centred design. In 6th International Symposium on Environmental Software Systems, Prague, Czech Republic, 2007: 10.

Comes T, Wijngaards N, Hiete M, et al.: A distributed scenario-based decision support system for robust decision-making in complex situations. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2011; 3(4): 17-35. DOI: 10.4018/jiscrm.2011100102.

French S, Turoff M: Decision support systems. Commun ACM. 2007; 50: 39-40. DOI: 10.1145/1226736.1226762.

Hsu P-H, Wu S-Y, Lin F-T: Disaster management using GIS technology: A case study in Taiwan. In Proceedings of the 26th Asia Conference on Remote Sensing, Hanoi, Vietnam, 2005: 7-11.

Sasaki JA: Proposal on patient transport decision making in multiple hospitals in a large-scale disaster. In Murayama Y, Velev D, Zlateva P (eds.): International Conference on Information Technology in Disaster Risk Reduction. Sofia, Bulgaria: Springer, 2017: 9-19. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-68486-4_2.

Steen O, Pope A, Rauner M, et al.: A comprehensive decision support system for enhanced emergency decision management and training. In Murayama Y, Velev D, Zlateva P (eds.): International Conference on Information Technology in Disaster Risk Reduction. Sofia, Bulgaria: Springer, 2017: 183-9197. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-68486-4_15.

Van de Walle B, Rutkowski A-F: A fuzzy decision support system for IT service continuity threat assessment. Decis Support Syst. 2006; 42(3): 1931-1943. DOI: 10.1016/j.dss.2006.05.002.

Nawari NO, Ravindran S: Blockchain and building information modeling (BIM): Review and applications in post-disaster recovery. Buildings. 2019; 9(6): 149. DOI: 10.3390/buildings9060149.

Zeug G, Brunner D, Scavazzon M: An efficient GIS concept for disaster management in developing countries based on virtual globes. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2009; 1(4): 15-32. DOI: 10.4018/jiscrm.2009071002.

Jin G, Nicolai BJ, Winer C, et al.: Development of a web-based 3-D visualization and cluster computing system for disaster management. Int J Eng Res Innov. 2014; 6(2): 41-48.

Nouali N, Bouchama N, Bendjoudi A, et al.: Information technology for enhancing disaster management. Congrès Natl Télécommun Appl. 2009: 23-24. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.1.4241.1285.

Prudhomme C, Cruz C, Roxin A, et al.: A framework to improve the disaster response through a knowledge-based multi-agent system. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2017; 9(3): 96-109. DOI: 10.4018/IJISCRAM.2017070106.

Sinha A, Kumar P, Rana NP, et al.: Impact of internet of things (IoT) in disaster management: A task-technology fit perspective. Ann Oper Res. 2019; 283: 759-736. DOI: 10.1007/s10479-017-2658-1.

Noble KT, White C, Turoff M: Emergency management information system support rectifying first responder role abandonment during extreme events. Int J Inform Syst Crisis Response Manag. 2014; 6(1): 65-78. DOI: 10.4018/ijiscram.2014010103.

Larson RC, Metzger MD, Cahn MF: Responding to emergencies: Lessons learned and the need for analysis. Interfaces. 2006; 36(6): 486-501. DOI: 10.1287/inte.1060.0250.

Sekhar SRM, Siddesh GM, Kalra S, et al.: A study of use cases for smart contracts using blockchain technology. Int J Inform Syst Social Change. 2019; 10(2): 15-34. DOI: 10.4018/IJISSC.2019040102.

Naqvi SAR, Hassan SA, Pervaiz H, et al.: Drone-aided communication as a key enabler for 5G and resilient public safety networks. IEEE Commun Mag. 2018; 56(1): 36-42. DOI: 10.1109/MCOM.2017.1700451.

Moher D, Liberati A, Tetzlaff J, et al.: Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement. Ann Intern Med. 2009; 151(4): 264-269.

Muntz RR, Barclay T, Dozier J, et al.: IT Roadmap to a Geospatial Future, Report of the Committee on Intersections between Geospatial Information and Information Technology. Washington DC, USA: National Academies Press (National Academy of Sciences), 2003. ISBN: 0-309-08738-4.

Published

11/01/2021

How to Cite

Fazeli, PhD, M. A., H. Moghaddasi, PhD, A. Hosseini, PhD, F. Asadi, PhD, and H. Haghighi, PhD. “Application of ICT in Effective Crisis Management: A Systematic Review”. Journal of Emergency Management, vol. 19, no. 6, Nov. 2021, pp. 591-06, doi:10.5055/jem.0612.