Agency Collaboration on Social Media during Disasters

Agency collaboration is an important function in the management of disasters and catastrophes. For effective emergency management the need for intergovernmental and cross sector collaboration grows as the scale of the disaster increases. This study explores the use of social media platforms as a means to establish and maintain agency collaboration for emergency management related agencies. Using qualitative observational and coding analysis, this study identifies the types of connections made by theme and context. While several researchers have examined the use of social media during disasters. Most studies examine the use of social media by the public. The findings from this study will assist emergency management practitioners in developing social media strategies that incorporate methods to connect with other agencies on social media.