Social Media in Crisis Management: An Evaluation and Analysis of Crisis Informatics Research

ABSTRACT

Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the use of social media in emergency and crisis events has greatly increased and many studies have concentrated on the use of ICT and social media before, during, or after these events. The field of research that these studies fall under is called crisis informatics. In this article, we evaluate and analyze crisis informatics research by looking at case studies of social media use in emergencies, outlining the types of research found in crisis informatics, and expounding upon the forms of interaction that have been researched. Finally, we summarize the achievements from a human–computer interaction perspective and outline trends and challenges for future research.

Acknowledgments

Parts of this article are based on a previous summary of crisis informatics research (Reuter & Kaufhold, 2018). The research group KontiKat was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) (no. 13N14351).

Notes

1. https://www.statista.com/statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-number-of-users/.

2. This table extends an earlier version (Reuter & Kaufhold, 2018).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Christian Reuter

Christian Reuter, PhD, is a professor for “Science and Technology for Peace and Security” (PEASEC) at Technische Universität Darmstadt and supervisor of the research group KontiKat at the University of Siegen, Germany. His research focuses on interactive and collaborative technologies such as social media in safety-critical environments, conflicts, crises, and emergencies.

Amanda Lee Hughes

Amanda Lee Hughes, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Computer Science Department at Utah State University. Prof. Hughes’ research interests lie in understanding the issues that arise when information communication technologies (ICTs) are introduced into social contexts (and vice versa). Her overarching goal in conducting this type of research is to implement and deploy software systems based on deep understandings of the social context in which they reside.

Marc-André Kaufhold

Marc-André Kaufhold, MSc, is a researcher at the research group “Science and Technology for Peace and Security” (PEASEC) at Technische Universität Darmstadt and the BMBF research group KontiKat at the University of Siegen, Germany. His research focuses on continuity management, crisis information systems, and authorities’ and citizens’ emergency response via social media.