Crisis-Related Decision-Making and the Influence of Culture on the Behavior of Decision Makers

Ásthildur Elva Bernharðsdóttir is a research scientist at the Earthquake Engineering Research Centre, University of Iceland. She holds Cand.oecon degree and PhD in Political Science. Ásthildur has managerial experiences as a former director for Excellence Iceland, and director for the Institute of International Affairs and the Centre for Small State Studies, University of Iceland. She has also been involved in the broadcasting media. She has taught crisis management courses and supervised case study research. Associate of CRISMART and of the Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs at Syracuse University Ásthildur’s approach is interdisciplinary but her research focuses on crises, culture, risk, risk education and recovery. She has published research on crisis and disaster management, coordinated research group on crisis management in Iceland and participated in the development of a long-term disaster relief and recovery planning for local authorities. At the Earthquake Engineering Centre, Ásthildur teaches a graduate course (on MSc/PhD level) “Urban resilience in disaster prone areas”.

• Chapter 1: Introduction.- Chapter 2: Conceptualizing Culture.- Chapter 3: Crisis Management: Themes and Variables.- Chapter 4: Risk Reduction.- Chapter 5: Decision Making and Decision-making Unit.- Chapter 6: Information Management.- Chapter 7: Learning.- Chapter 8: Crises and Culture within Countries: A Case Study.- Chapter 9: Discussions and Summation.- Chapter 10: Conclusions and Agenda for Continued Research.- Appendices.