Scientific Journal of Rescue Relief
Volume:13 Issue: 4, Winter 2021

Today, the importance of paying attention to human resources for the growth and development of relief organizations, such as the Red Crescent, emergency services, and fire stations, has been considered a key priority at the decisions and activities of the managers of these organizations. Therefore, the present study was conducted to investigate the effect of participation in relay sports on the quality of work life and job performance of relief forces with the mediating role of professional ethics in Mazandaran Province, Iran.

The present applied study was conducted based on a descriptive-survey approach. The statistical population of the study consisted of all relief forces, including firefighters, Red Crescent rescuers, and emergency service staff, (with unknown sample size) who participated in the Hogam relay sport. The research sample included 168 members of the above-mentioned forces who participated in an event related to the Hogam sport in Mazandaran Province, 2018. The samples were selected using the non-random convenience sampling method; regarding this, all participants in the mentioned event were entered into the research. The required data were collected using questionnaires, namely the Walton Quality of Work Life Questionnaire, Paterson Job Performance Questionnaire, Sports Questionnaire (developed by Taji et al., 2010), and Standard Professional Ethics Questionnaire (designed by Kadozir, 2002).

The results showed that participation in Hogam sport had a significant effect on job performance and quality of work life of relief workers with the mediating role of professional ethics. Therefore, it can be said that addressing this sport, which has its specific nature compared to other sports, can have a significant impact on the quality of  work life and job performance of employees, which will be doubled by the observance of professional ethics.

It can be concluded that the managers of these organizations can take steps to implicitly and explicitly institutionalize professional ethics by addressing ethical complaints of employees and implementing programs of strengthening ethics in employees to improve the quality of employees' work life.

The major events occurring in recent decades have demonstrated that human societies are constantly affected by disasters which have always posed a threat to people's lives and properties. The present study aimed to introduce and expand the concept and capacities of "the survival vehicle" in Iran. This descriptive case study was conducted based on an applied research design.

This descriptive case study was conducted based on an applied research design. The library research method was used to develop theoretical backgrounds, and to collect information, the field method was employed with observation and researcher's information.

Considering that rescue forces have to be present at the scene of the disaster for consecutive days and weeks, they are directly exposed to threats, injuries, shortages, and problems as affected people are. Therefore, rescue experts and the Rapid Reaction Team of the Red Crescent Society of Kurdistan Province embarked on designing and using a vehicle called "Survival vehicle" taking into account the priorities in the affected area. This vehicle maintains the strength and motivation of relief forces by meeting their basic needs. Moreover, it increases the productivity of the relief forces and facilitates disaster management by strengthening the resilience of relief workers.

As evidenced by the results of the present study, the use of the survival vehicle brings about numerous positive advantages for the members of the Red Crescent rapid response team, as well as relief and operational teams, at the time of crises.

Nowadays, paying attention to the significance of football stadiums as important urban facilities and applying the principles of passive defense in them are among critical areas in the field of urban management. Given that, the primary goal of the present research is to investigate the pathology of football stadiums with an emphasis on passive defense.

The present study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in terms of the research approach. Data collection was accomplished through documentary and field studies. In the documentary domain, information and data were gathered from the website of sports complexes, publications, and brochures. Regarding the field domain, spatial data related to the city of Mashhad were collected from the database and field studies in the form of observations and interviews with stadium officials. The target stadiums in the present study are Takhti and Imam Reza stadiums, which were studied based on two main criteria of design and location selection based on the principles of passive defense. After specifying the indicators, Arc GIS software was used to perform data analysis and spatial analysis operations.

The research findings indicate that the most significant weaknesses of Takhti Stadium are the lack of access to first and secondary arterial roads, the presence of intersections and heavy traffic near the stadium, inadequate open space and parking lots, and lack of automatic fire suppression systems. The drawbacks of Imam Reza Stadium include the absence of shelter, no access to the subway stations, no direct access to primary arterial roads, and the absence of entrance and exit passageways in the stadium.

The results indicate the fact that paying attention to the indicators and criteria of passive defense can extensively conserve and maintain sports facilities at times of crisis.

Due to the vulnerability of the country to various disasters and events, the role of directing public opinion, and the attention of the general public and political elites to Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), the present study aimed to obtain and explain an executive model of IRIB news in crisis management.

This study was conducted based on an applied research method in terms of objective, and it is qualitative research using an exploratory approach in terms of method. The statistical population consisted of experts, managers, and professors of media and crisis (Crescent Society and Crisis Management Organization). The data were collected using a semi-structured in-depth interview technique, and a saturation was observed using a targeted sampling and after 25 interviews. In addition, the Strauss method in grounded theory was applied to analyze the data. Moreover, in the process of theory analysis, MAXQDA (version 2020) was applied, and a total of 120 concepts and 20 categories were identified.

Some categories, such as the unprofessional nature of media, unprofessional coverage of news, biased news organization, lack of media independence, public distrust, and tendency toward alternative media, are the requirements for explaining an executive model of news in crisis management, which are axially coded as causal conditions. In addition, appropriate news coverage, information, analytical programs, people's voice, crisis management principles and organization, education and informing, and culturalization, were the seven main categories selected as the main strategies to develop the model.

Some categories, such as the improvement of media performance, de-escalation instead of crisis-making, rumor prevention, obtainment of public trust, accountability of officials, organizing and mobilizing human forces, social cohesion, increasing resilience, as well as reconstruction and rehabilitation, are of the consequences of using appropriate strategies to explain IRIB news in crisis management.

This study aimed to provide a competency-based training model for the Red Crescent Society rescuers and relief workers.

The present study was applied in terms of purpose and the required data were collected through mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative).  In the qualitative section, the statistical population consisted of academic and organizational experts as well as experts in the field of education who were selected by purposeful sampling. Theoretical saturation was reached after interviews with 20 subjects. In the quantitative section, the statistical population consisted of all the rescuers and relief workers of the Red Crescent Society in Tehran province (335 people), Iran. The subjects were selected by stratified random sampling and surveyed using a researcher-made questionnaire that was scored based on a 5-point scale.

In this section, quantitative data analysis was performed in SPSS and SmartPLS3 software in two areas of analysis (descriptive and inferential) and interpretation of results.

The results led to the identification of 25 components, 81 indicators, and 8 main dimensions of competency-based education. These dimensions include the educational environment (0.735), learners (0.623), execution of the educational program (0.615); competency needs assessment (0.563), educational design and planning (0.504), development of competency criteria (0.420), educational evaluation (0.397), and review and update of the educational process and program (0.341), in the order of priority.

Participation suggests partaking and treating people in such a way that enables them to retain a decisive impact on events that affect their lives. The present study aimed to investigate the factors impacting the increase in the participation of aid workers in the programs of the Red Crescent Relief and Rescue Organization.

The present research is applied purpose-wise, cross-sectional time-wise, and a survey in terms of data collection. The statistical population involves every volunteer aid worker of the Red Crescent Society of Kermanshah Province in 2021. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire whose face validity was obtained. Moreover, the questionnaire's reliability was confirmed through Cronbach's alpha. Data were analyzed within SPSS and Amos software.

Variables of sex, social capital, safety culture, religious beliefs, and media consumption significantly and positively impact the participation of aid workers. Furthermore, the impact of the socio-economic status as a variable is significant and inverse. However, variables of age and marital status do not significantly influence the participation of aid workers. Among these variables, the media consumption variable has the highest regression coefficient value with a regression coefficient of 0.454 while the marital status variable, with a coefficient of 0.039, has the smallest regression coefficient value on the participation of aid workers in the programs of the Red Crescent Relief and Rescue Organization.

Increasing the cooperation and participation of aid workers in the activities and programs of the Red Crescent Relief and Rescue Organization is impacted by several factors to which we need to pay close attention. Attending to these factors can significantly improve how the forces are utilized and further fulfill the goals and programs of the Red Crescent Rescue Organization.

The increase in the number of natural disasters has made different societies constantly discover and invent solutions to control the adverse effects of disasters with more emphasis on prevention or minimize them by improving the quality of the rescue process (in the response phase). In the last few decades, the need for social participation in order to manage risks has been developing in the form of community-based activities. This study was conducted to present a community-based crisis management model focusing on the process of relief and rescue in natural disasters in Iran, 2020.

This qualitative study was performed based on the grounded theory method defined by Strauss and Corbin. The statistical population of the study included all crisis management and non-governmental organizations experts in universities, the Crisis Management Organization, general managers of provincial crisis management, and senior managers of the Red Crescent Society. The samples were selected using the purposive and theoretical method of snowball sampling while taking into account the geographical, climatic, cultural, social, and religious diversity of different regions of the country. As a result, the sample size was obtained at 22 people. The required data were collected through a semi-structured interview. In the analysis of qualitative information, open coding, axial coding, and selective coding were used manually).

The results of the study showed that the causal conditions of community-based crisis management included "legal obligation", "strategic planning", "attracting public participation", "forming and developing expert teams", and "acting (prevention, preparedness, needs analysis, planning, and response)"; and contextual conditions consisted of "geographical conditions", "social capacity building", and "creating cohesion and empathy". Moreover, intervening conditions involved "general sensitization", "preparation", and "logistics and equipment"; strategies included "risk management", "human resource management", "training (general and professional)" and "barrier removal"; and the consequences of community-based crisis management consisted of "increasing public awareness in the face of emergencies", "reducing the risk of areas "increasing community resilience", "improving the quality of post-disaster assessment", "accelerating the response process", "determining priorities appropriately", "saving the golden time of rescue", "increasing the number of survivors", "accelerating relief operations" "distributing relief items fairly", "improving the quality of rescue operations", "decreasing the amount of damage", "managing resources and facilities properly", "reducing response costs", "decreasing the adverse psychological effects of the disaster", "organized presence of grassroots groups", "eliminating the shortcomings and completing the performance of the responsible agencies", and "increasing the level of public satisfaction".

Community-based crisis management is a new and effective approach that its implementation has a positive impact on increasing resilience and thus reducing the vulnerability of communities. The proper and successful implementation of the community-based approach requires structural changes, amendment of laws, and development of relevant bylaws. It also needs measures that should be implemented at the national level, in the country's crisis management system, and at the local level.

Disaster preparedness is one of the most important components of reducing vulnerability, which is poorly considered in Tehran, Iran. Several factors and personality traits are involved in this negligence. This study aimed to investigate the procrastination trait and its relationship with disaster preparedness levels in Tehran, Iran.

This descriptive-correlational study was conducted between 2018 and 2021 using structural equation modeling. The statistical population of this study was citizens in Tehran, Iran. A sample size of 419 cases was included in this study. Standard tests have also been utilized to investigate the variables.

Based on the obtained results, according to the coefficients reported in the model, it can be observed that procrastination has no significant effect on disaster preparedness

Procrastination and experiences gained affect people's preparedness for disaster. According to the results, the preparedness of the people of Tehran for accidents is very low.