Meanings of Disasters in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta

Abstract The concept of “disaster” refers to a social crisis characterized by a community’s inability to manage the social impacts of a disruptive event with its normal capacities and resources. This understanding highlights the phenomenon’s root causes in social vulnerabilities that lead to the unequal distribution of resources and power, pushing certain groups to live in unsafe and unsustainable conditions, and a lack of disaster preparedness and planning. A first glance at the meaning of disasters in the political and daily discourses in Vietnam reveals an understanding contrary to the social sciences conceptualization described earlier. Disasters are commonly framed as natural phenomena (thiên tai), highlighting their physical scale and severity while omitting the root causes embedded in systemic issues and structural gaps. However, the meanings attributed to disasters vary significantly across different contexts. Prior to a disaster, communities perceive disasters primarily as risks. For farmers, these risks are understood in relation to being threats to essential main values, such as crop production, constrained capacity, potential opportunities, and collective action. Contrary to conventional views that regard risks negatively, many farmers in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta interpret risks positively. This risk perception reflects a cultural meaning of disaster risks, whereby the emphasis is placed on adaptation and coexistence with nature rather than avoidance. During and immediately after disaster events, the interpretation shifts toward an emphasis on direct disaster impacts, which are emotionally felt. Farmers tend to describe disasters primarily as events causing “crop loss,” reflecting the (in)tangible physical, psychological, and economic harm to their primary livelihood. In this circumstance, the social impacts of disasters, such as social disruptions, begin to emerge. In research contexts, especially those creating a reflexive space and facilitating a deeper reflection, participants can critically examine disasters beyond the surface appearance of hazard events and their immediate effects. Within these contexts, participants can develop a more nuanced understanding, unpacking historical patterns and underlying causes of disasters within evolving socioeconomic and political systems and recognizing the importance of social responsibility among various social groups in contributing to disasters. Overall, the meaning of disasters is fluid and context-dependent, shaped by interactions among cultural knowledge, governmental policies, socio-environmental conditions, community livelihood, and collective agency. Effective disaster research thus requires bottom-up, context-sensitive approaches that respect local interpretations, cultural reflexivity, and daily practices. Only then can researchers avoid prematurely jumping to conclusions and develop the capacity to uncover socially constructed layers of disasters as social phenomena.