Unbalanced relationship between flood risk perception and flood preparedness from the perspective of response intention and socio-economic factors: a case study of Nanjing, China

Although risk perception and flood preparedness were crucial in flood management, perceived flood risk was not always translated into flood preparedness. It was essential to investigate the potential association between risk perception and flood preparedness. This study focused on Nanjing as the research region, designed questionnaire survey and explored the influence relationship between risk perception and flood preparedness. Participants showed the medium perception of food risk and higher flood preparedness. Higher risk perception was observed in individuals with regular exercising, the elderly, low education level and long living time. Higher flood preparedness occurred among groups of females, the elderly and high education level. Individuals relied more on threat appraisal to perceive risk, which failed to trigger high enough coping appraisal. Inadequate risk perception led to a strenuous transform into flood preparedness with unbalanced relationship. Groups with distinct socio-economic characteristics exhibited varying preferences to achieve risk perception and flood preparedness. Females relied more on flood knowledge to perceive flood risk. Path analysis suggested that threat appraisal transformed into flood preparedness under the effect of response intention and social-economic features. Groups with high education level or bad health were more likely to perceive risk and engage in preventive behavior. These findings could provide critical insights into intervention strategies for enhancing public flood preparedness in flood management.