TAPping into homeowners' decision making and emotions: A think-aloud experimental study of homeowner responses to flood buyouts

Details

• Journal Title:
  International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction
• Personal Author:
  Dineva, Polina ; Inocencio, Ancilla ; Mcgranaghan, Christina ; Messer, Kent D. ; Palm-Forster, Leah H. ; Paul, Laura ; Siders, A.R.
• NOAA Program & Office:
  NOS (National Ocean Service) ; Sea Grant ; OCM (Office for Coastal Management)
• Sea Grant Program:
  DELU (Delaware Sea Grant)
• Description:
  Voluntary home buyouts are a central but often contentious strategy for reducing flood risk. Coordination mechanisms have been shown to increase participation and improve buyout outcomes in laboratory settings, yet their real-world effectiveness remains uncertain. This study extends prior experimental work by pairing different buyout strategies with think-aloud protocols (TAPs) to capture the cognitive and emotional reasoning of homeowners facing simulated buyout offers. Among homeowners, acceptance rates increase from 51% under a baseline posted-price mechanism to 65% when coordination incentives are introduced. Verbal data reveal that homeowners' decisions are shaped not only by financial incentives and place and community attachment, but also by moral reasoning and perceived social tension. Some participants describe accepting a buyout out of concern for neighbors, while others reject it due to ethical discomfort or emotional resistance to leaving their community. These findings highlight that incentive-based coordination can encourage participation in buyouts but may also trigger feelings of guilt. Misinterpretation of flood probabilities further complicates decision-making, underscoring the importance of risk communication. By integrating behavioral and verbal data, this study offers a more nuanced foundation for designing equitable, community-centered buyout programs aligned with climate adaptation goals.
• Source:
  International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 140, 106155
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2026.106155
• ISSN:
  2212-4209
• Format:
  pdf
• Publisher:
  Elsevier BV
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• License:
  https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Rights Information:
  CC BY
• Compliance:
  Library
• Download URL:
  https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/75793/noaa_75793_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.66 MB]
• Collection(s):
  Sea Grant Publications ; National Ocean Service (NOS)
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:52bb70aa7ee35a2d8c05f01a4fe5e849deeaa11b24e6a1c88f15860f90db63a3ba1f00793bacf9be84eaee52dafeac78cd2d2b1cdd4b7cbf858383603e5bf408