Animals as valuable instinctive and ‘learned’ beings in the field of disaster management: a comparative perspective

This article justified the role of animals in the field of disaster management by testing the hypothesis that if animal behavior is meaningful, then it deserves a systematic study. An increasing number of researches have investigated, in a limited way, how animals react to the occurrence of disaster. The present study examined the issue in terms of its importance and applicability in the international community. Comparative qualitative analysis was used as the major methodology. Two comparative characteristics, namely the similarities and the differences between animals and humans, were cross-checked on three analytical levels: (1) basic instinct, (2) disaster response, and (3) learning ability. Because animal behavior was found meaningful compared with human behavior, the hypothesis was accepted. In this regard, humans should further analyze animal behavior and then include the significance of observing their behavioral patterns into diverse emergency operation plans. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015