fire science unit II essay

FIR 4306, Human Behavior in Fire 1

UNIT II STUDY GUIDE

Socioeconomic Factors Related

to Fire Incidents

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit II Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

1. Describe socioeconomic indicators of increased fire incidents. 2. Identify and describe factors of income levels that may affect fire

incidents in urban areas. 3. Explain socioeconomic factors that affect an individual. 4. Discuss how fire risks in rural areas are affected by poverty. 5. Identify advantages of studying socioeconomic factors of fire incidents.

Unit Lesson Income level and socioeconomic factors appear to be obvious issues that can challenge your effort to understand and change fire-related human behavior. These factors can affect the creation of fire hazards, the knowledge or capability to contact the fire department, or the ability to escape from the fire-involved structure. One major hurdle that always touches your heart is the nation-wide incidents of toddlers and very young children being left alone in their home and being involved in a fire-related incident that leads to severe injury or even death. This often occurs in low income residential areas. It is unfair to expect these innocent victims to demonstrate the appropriate behavior during a fire emergency. Research has found that three variables explain the variation in fire rates the best: parental presence, poverty, and under-education (FEMA 1997). Additionally, there are other variables which effect fire rates, but not to the same degree. These variables include good education, race, home ownership, adequate income, housing crowdedness, housing vacancy, and age of the housing structure. You will examine some of these issues more closely in this unit. Parental Presence Many people may feel the parental presence, or lack of, is not very significant. Naturally, there are some cases of parental absence with low incident of fires, but a negative correlation has been found between parental presence and fire rates. This means that when the parental presence increases, fire rates decrease. Think about it. A single parent household generally has less flexibility to address household and child care matters. Examples have been found that some single parents expressed that they left their children alone because they had no other choice. Even those who attempt to make arrangements with neighbors or relatives for emergency purposes cannot always count on this option. Interestingly enough research has discovered that most parents do not consider running out to do a quick errand as leaving their children “unattended,” regardless of socioeconomic background (Kraizer, Witte, Fryer, & Miyoshi 1990). The problem in all of these circumstances is that most children are unequipped to deal with a fire emergency.

Reading Assignment See information below.

Suggested Reading See information below.

Key Terms 1. Education level 2. Housing affordability 3. Income level 4. Neighborhood decline 5. Parental presence 6. Socioeconomic factors

FIR 4306, Human Behavior in Fire 2

Income Levels Income levels are very important in urban areas because most of the socioeconomic risk factors related to fires appear to be related to income. This relationship between adequate income and fire rates is also negatively correlated. As income goes up, fire rates go down. Issues that skew this relationship include education—low income rate is associated with low levels of education. Low income levels are also associated with lack of smoke detectors in residential homes. Education Levels Research has also found low levels of education as a contributor to fire risk (FEMA, 1997). It is suggested that those with little education are less likely to “grasp the full importance of public fire safety education messages” (Fahy & Norton, 1989). When fire departments provide training and educational services they need to keep this in mind. Fire-service personnel responsible for educational services also have a responsibility to ensure the fire-safety messages are designed to get the attention of various audiences. A message for a person with little education must be carefully planned. Neighborhood Decline Neighborhood decline is also a risk indicator. Vacant buildings are more likely to experience severe fires than other types of buildings. These vacant or run-down buildings may discourage apartment or building owners from investing in the safety precautions for the building. Often, these owners do not live in the area and may not even be aware of the condition of their buildings. There have been cases where an owner may use arson to force tenants out of a building or fraudulently collect on an insurance policy. Housing Affordability Another factor that can affect household fire risk is housing affordability. A household may be considered “shelter poor” if they can pay their rent, but are not able to cover other basic needs like food and clothing. Shelter-poor households are not likely to invest in fire protection devices. Objects such as smoke detectors or fire extinguishers are considered low priority. Even if there are existing smoke detectors batteries for these detectors will more likely be used for what is considered a more pressing matter. Another interesting point to note is that research has indicated that fire death rates were considerably higher in the South than in the North. This could be attributed to increased poverty in rural areas, with the south having more rural areas than the north, typically. Another issue that plays a role in this factor is that with the milder climate in the south, there is less permanent heat fixtures in the south, so temporary heating devices may not be vented properly or used correctly. There still remains much to be understood about socioeconomic factors and their relevance to fire risks. A prior task for all fire departments is to acknowledge that these factors affect the household fire risk. Therefore, fire departments must study ways to improve their marketing to these households and educate citizens taking into account socioeconomic issues that may affect training.

FIR 4306, Human Behavior in Fire 3

References Fahy, R., & Norton, A. (1989). How being poor affects fire risk….Fire journal,

83(1) pp. 29-36. Federal Emergency Management Agency United States Fire Administration

(1997). Socioeconomic factors and the incidence of fire (FA 170). Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from http://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/statistics/socio.pdf

Kraizer, S., Witte, S., Fryer, Jr., G. E., & Miyoshi, T. (1990). Children in self-care:

A new perspective. Child welfare (November/December), pp. 571-581.

Reading Assignment Click here to access the article below. Federal Emergency Management Agency, United States Fire Administration,

National Fire Data Center. (1997). Socioeconomic factors and the incidence of fire. Retrieved from http://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/statistics/socio.pdf

Suggested Reading Molnar, J., Peck, M., & Swart, D. (2009, October). A global plan for burn

prevention and care. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 87(10), 802+. Retrieved from General OneFile.