Public Responses to Coastal Weather Hazards: Toward a Holistic Approach of Risk Messaging Combining the Strengths of Scientific and Place-Based Knowledge

Communication about coastal hazards, such as hurricanes, storm surges, and coastal flooding, is critical to enhancing public understanding, facilitating timely protective action, and strengthening long-term community resilience for coastal communities. Despite extensive efforts by governmental and media agencies, prior research presents inconsistent evidence regarding the effectiveness of different messaging strategies, including variations in framing, visual representation, and source credibility. These inconsistencies highlight the need to examine how individuals interpret and act upon hazard information within specific local and social contexts. Through semi-structured interviews with residents of coastal counties in North Carolina, this study investigates the ways people engage with and make sense of mediated, environmental, and social cues. Drawing on the Protective Action Decision Model (PADM), the findings contribute a deeper understanding of how at-risk populations integrate institutional messages and community-based knowledge to shape their protective decisions and preparedness behaviors.