Immaculate Conception Academy

South Campus

The Impact of Social

Page 1 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

The Impact of Social Media on Langkaan 1 Residents

During a National Disaster

A research paper presented to:

Mrs. Aura Aledia

Faculty, Junior High School

Immaculate Conception Academy South Campus

In fulfillment

of the Performance Task for the subject

English, Mathematics, Statistics,

Araling Panlipunan,

and Edukasyon sa Pagpapakatao

By:

Carlyn Manipis

Jeth Cases

Althea Dela Cruz

Michaela Diosan

Sophia Sotto

Zedumreb Bermudez

Richard Culas

March 2021

Page 2 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

CHAPTER 1:

PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

As stated by American actor, model, activist, and director, Ian Somerhalder, "Social Media

is changing the world, and we're all here witnessing it." New technologies have emerged since

the mid-1990s that allow people to interact and share information via the Internet. These

platforms, commonly referred to as "social media," allow people to connect in ways that were

either non-existent or widely unavailable 15 years ago. The term “social media” refers to

Internet-based applications that allow people to create or share information, ideas, communicate,

and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks. It can be used via

computers, tablets, smart and cell phones, and text messages on mobile phones (SMS).

In society today, using social media has become a necessary daily activity. The majority

of people are familiar with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Messenger, Gmail, and Google. Almost

everyone has a Facebook account, ages ranging from 13 to 64. No wonder Facebook is the

largest Social Media network, with 1.35 billion monthly active users. Social media can bring

people from all over the world together. And not only did it help the persons bond, but it also an

ever-increasing part of the disaster response. Recently, social media has played an increasingly

important role in disasters and emergencies. The fourth most popular source of emergency

information is now social media sites. Individuals and communities have used the emergence of

these new communication channels to extend warnings to people in high-risk areas, inform

friends and family that someone is safe, and raise funds for disaster relief. Social Media is

becoming a vital source of information to those in a disaster area pre and post-disaster (Via

Internet, if available, or SMS updates.), which drives awareness to those outside the affected

Page 3 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

areas, encouraging volunteers, donors, and connects displaced family and friends. By posting on

Facebook, use the Twitter hashtag, which is used as an operational proxies to identify messages

and other social media platforms. It can also offer information about aid, centers, and other

resources available to those affected, and most of all, it's a convenient and great service during

natural disasters.

Statement of the Problem:

Natural disasters have become more common in recent years. The Philippines has been

affected by several natural disasters in recent years. Typhoons such as Typhoon Quinta, Super

Typhoon Rolly, and Typhoon Ulysses, as well as 6.9 magnitude earthquakes in Davao Del Sur

and the eruption of Taal Volcano in Batangas, have shown a negative impact. A natural disaster

is the effects of a natural hazard (flood, typhoon, volcanic eruption, earthquake, heat wave, or

landslide). It happens without warning therefore it leads to financial, environmental, and it takes

the lives of tens, hundreds, and thousands of people. Due to natural disasters, there is an

increased communication since people seek to contact family and friends in the disaster zone and

seek information regarding food, shelter, and transportation.

Social media has played a significant role in disseminating information about these

disasters by allowing people to share information, ask for help and it also alerts the government.

Page 4 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

The study aims to determine the significance of Social Media during the occurrence of

national disaster within Langkaan 1 residents.

Specifically, the inquiry also aims to provide answers to the following questions:

1. What is the role of social media during a national disaster?

2. How do people use social media during national disaster?

3. Does social media helps the people during the natural disasters or it brings more people

down/problems.

Scope and Limitation

The general purpose of the study is about the efficiency of Social Media during natural

disasters and if it really helps or not. The study covers how it helps people and saves lives and

will only involve natural disasters. The researchers will gather opinions and informations to

prove this study. The respondents will be the people inside Langkaan 1.

Significance of the study

This research aims to give information and give people knowledge about how Social media

platforms can be used to help to spread awareness, support and alerts and to know if it is needed

or not.

Every individuals. Will acquire awareness of the impact of social media is used during or after

natural disasters

Future Researchers. Would learn from the details and have a guide for their analysis about the

impact of social media on Langkaan 1 residents during a national disaster

Page 5 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

Definition of Terms

For a better and deeper understanding of the research we conducted, here are the following

indications:

Communication. An act of passing on information from one place, person, to another. Each part

of a communication is consist at least one sender, a message, and a receiver.

Natural Disaster. A natural event that causes great damage or even loss of life.

Social Media. A computer-based technology that facilitates sharing of information, sharing of

idea, thoughts through the building of virtual networks and communities. It also gives users

quick and convenient electronic communication of content.

Page 6 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

CHAPTER 2:

PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Foreign Studies

Osman Ulvi et al. (2019). Journal of Public Health and Emergency. People post

overwhelming amounts of imagery data on social networks within minutes of a disaster hit,

thanks to the widespread availability of smartphones with cameras as well as the ease of

capturing and sharing these images online.  Contrary (or complementary) to the existing

literature on using social media textual data for crisis response and management, if processed

timely and effectively, social media imagery data can also enable early decision making and

other humanitarian relief efforts such as gaining situational awareness.

Social media use dramatically increases when natural disasters such as cyclones, hurricanes, or

typhoons occur. However, social media is somewhat of a new concept and there is little

knowledge about the effect of social media on these traumatic events. In this study, we will

investigate the roles of social media and mainstream media on hurricanes and how they may

potentially have a bigger impact. A systematic review was conducted to obtain information about

the impact of hurricanes on public health. More specifically effected individuals, their families,

communities, cities and regions will be looked at with regards to social media use. Twelve

different studies were read to obtain information on the positive and negative effects of social

media during a hurricane. Influences and risk factors of media and their role on the distribution

of information were observed. Social media platforms helped spread awareness, support, and

warnings. Social media has shown to have impactful effects during tropical storms around the

world. Social media and mass media are two important resources that when utilized, many lives

can be saved. Though social media has more impact on the health and safety of subjects, it is

important that it be used in tandem with the mass media to reach the greatest number of people.

Now that almost everyone has a smart phone, during a storm it will keep everyone “in the loop”

of information of when, where, and what to do to prepare. Facebook was similar with displaying

Page 7 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

important and beneficial information. Twitter is the most prominent source of information

pertaining to people’s well-being and relief. It is a great way to spread information quickly to the

masses. Twitter has become more prominent than mass media; this shows that times are

changing, education and technology are constantly evolving, and therefore public health

professionals need to adapt to the generations in order to reach out to everyone.

Local Studies

Chan et al. (2013). Typhoon Haiyan (aka Yolanda) and beyond. Back in 2013 the

strongest typhoon to ever been recorded on earth pummelled the Philippines in November 2018.

Leaving gigantic obliteration generally from massive ocean waves passed up the solid breeze

that swept communities, killing between 6,000 and 10,000 people. The storm tore through

Tacloban City, in the area of Leyte, and influenced around 13 million individuals. During this

situation newspapers, telephone, radio, television, and other traditional communication channels

become non-operational. The people relied in Social media. Which is helpful for news, and the

people who had to connect to their loved ones and check if they’re fine. Also, almost all of the

donations they received were from people who witnessed the disaster through Social media.

social media use is particularly material with respect to the Philippines. The Philippines positions

among the top countries in regards to online media use. In 2012, 30 million people were

Facebook clients. With regards to storm Haiyan, some recounted proof additionally proposes that

web-based media assumed a significant part among influenced population and government

authority. Notwithstanding the extensive obliteration and the geographic, monetary, and

calculated requirements, the underlying reaction to the calamity, both inside just as from the

global local area, shown a better degree of coordination analyzed than past comparative.

After the disaster, they were encouraged thanks to the improvements in organizational and

technological innovations. Nevertheless, there are still several obstacles in the long road to

recovery,A portion of these issues can be mostly credited to an absence of coordination between

response agencies
Page 8 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

This study focuses on the ways social media was used in this natural disaster, as well as the

factors that shaped these particular uses. We also develop best practices of social media use

under these types of scenarios that are applicable to contexts outside the Philippines. In the next

sections, we shall review relevant literature; present the research questions, the method, and the

results; and finally discuss potential applications.

Foreign Literature

Tomer Simon et al. (2015). Socializing in emergencies—A review of the use of social media in

emergency situations. Social media tools are integrated in most parts of our daily lives, as

citizens, netizens, researchers or emergency responders. Lessons learnt from disasters and

emergencies that occurred globally in the last few years have shown that social media tools may

serve as an integral and significant component of crisis response.. Regardless of the type of

emergency, whether a terrorist attack, a hurricane or an earthquake, communication lines may be

overloaded and cellular networks overwhelmed as too many people attempt to use them to access

information. Social scientists have presented that post-disaster active public participation was

largely altruistic, including activities such as search and rescue, first aid treatment, victim

evacuation, and on-line help. Social media provides opportunities for engaging citizens in the

emergency management by both disseminating information to the public and accessing

information from them. During emergency events, individuals are exposed to large quantities of

information without being aware of their validity or risk of misinformation, but users are usually

swift to correct them, thus making the social media “self-regulating”. Social media (SM) tools,

especially Facebook and Twitter, are taking an ever growing part in disaster response. SM during

disasters and emergencies was initially utilized by the general public to communicate, and is now

being adopted by emergency responders, governments and non-governmental organizations as an

integral tool for disaster management (DM). In the last few decades, numerous regions

worldwide have been stricken by severe natural disasters, such as earthquakes, floods and

hurricanes, causing extensive damages to human lives and infrastructures. Disasters have been

defined as a state in which the social fabric is disrupted and becomes dysfunctional to a greater
Page 9 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

or lesser extent causing “maximum community disruption and dislocation” Natural disasters

have spatial characteristics such as extent and boundaries. This configuration is disrupted during

the onset of a sudden disaster which adversely affects the natural and human resources, as well

as the social relationships in the region. At present there seems to be a consensus among

researchers that a disaster cannot be explained by a number of recognizable factors, and efforts

are being made to understand why and when people perceive a certain period or common

experience as a disaster.

In response to disasters, numerous agencies and organizations often work together and direct

their efforts towards a common goal. Frequently, the public-private interface is strengthened to

support crisis management, and governments may simplify processes to access resources and

goods without due process.

According to Alexander 2005, an average day in the world “would see two to three disasters in

their emergency phases, 15–20 in their recovery periods, and about a dozen conflict-based

emergencies in progress”. These include events such as wars, earthquakes, and extreme weather

conditions. Coupled with the loss of communications, it becomes a period of uncertainty that

may cause collective stress resulting from deprivation of a large portion of the society from

expected routine conditions. These conditions, deprived from many, are socially defined as

normal human needs. However, the general public often takes an active role in disasters and their

involvement is becoming more and more visible, through the use of Information and

Communication Technologies (ICT).

Communication is one of the fundamental tools of emergency management. It becomes crucial

when there are dozens of agencies and organizations responding to a disaster. DM requires that

these organizations’ rapid response, along with their own set of roles and responsibilities, be

coordinated within and between sectors. Communication systems must be able to withstand a

disaster and enable devices to function effectively even when communication networks have

collapsed. These findings were further reinforced by Reddy et al. (2009) who found that current

technologies are ineffective and inadequate to support the flow of information within and

between coordinating teams during a disaster.

Page 10 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

Most disasters cause severe damage to communication infrastructure. Phone switches and cell

phone towers might collapse, fully or partially, thus disrupting the much needed communication.

Regardless of the type of emergency, whether a terrorist attack, a hurricane or an earthquake,

communication lines may be overloaded and cellular networks overwhelmed as too many people

attempt to use them to access information. Severe natural disasters may cause the entire

communications grid to blackout, as infrastructure is severely damaged. In some cases the

disaster may strike a geographic region that lacks communication infrastructure; but even in

places where partial communication infrastructure remains intact, deployment of new systems

may be found to be complex. As the conventional means of communication become irrelevant

during and immediately following a disaster, alternate means such as social networks become an

important conduit for information gathering and sharing.

Local Literature

According to 24 Oras /GMA News (March 9, 2021) Taal Volcano alert level is now at level 2

due to tremors and various activity such as rising temperature and high acidity surrounding the

volcano’s island. The Island is officially announced as “Permanent Danger Zone” by

PHIVOLCS. Activities and visits around the island and the lake are prohibited.

But 6 individuals were caught doing a social media activity on Facebook, known as the FB Live.

The 6 “Influencers” were caught near the crater and gathered information accidentally. The said

live/video caught the attention of residents around the island.

Gathering information or sharing details for the sake of everyone is a good thing we accumulate

from social media. But are is risking our life for the sake of the informations a good thing?

“Every Yin has a Yang”

The decision that the group did is very dangerous, as they are very near the crater. They’re

inhaling gas/air coming from the crater. That we all know that the air is containing tiny particles

that when you inhaled, the lungs take damage. Despite the circumstances they gathered a very

important information that alerted the civilization around or near Taal Volcano.
Page 11 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

Synthesis

Chan et al. (2013). Found that during the Typhoon Haiyan (aka Yolanda) through Tacloban City,

Leyte, influenced around 13 million individuals. During this situation newspapers, telephone,

radio, television, and other traditional communication channels become non-operational. The

people relied in Social media. Which is helpful for news, and the people who had to connect to

their loved ones and check if they’re fine. Also, almost all of the donations they received were

from people who witnessed the disaster through Social media. In Addition, Osman Ulvi et al.

(2019). This study initiates that social media platforms helped spread awareness, support, and

warnings. Social media has shown to have impactful effects during tropical storms around the

world. Furthermore, Tomer Simon et al. (2015). This literature tackles that in some cases the

disaster may strike a geographic region that lacks communication infrastructure. As the

conventional means of communication become irrelevant during and immediately following a

disaster, alternate means such as social networks become an important conduit for information

gathering and sharing. According to 24 Oras /GMA News (March 9, 2021). 6 individuals were

caught doing a social media activity on Facebook, known as the FB Live. The 6 “Influencers”

were caught near the crater and gathered information accidentally. The said live/video caught the

attention of residents around the island. This means that social media can be helpful if it is in the

right hand and it can be dangerous if it is not.

CHAPTER 3:

PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Research Design
Page 12 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

There are four different types of methods that can use to support the research. These

are: descriptive, qualitative, and quantitative. To determine the impact of social media during

national disasters was studied using the descriptive research design. It helps us to elaborate and

identify more the use of social media during natural disasters. The objective of descriptive

analysis is to collect data about the current state of affairs. Also, its use to test theories and to

have a better understanding of the current situation.

Locale of the study

The study was conducted at Dasmarinas, Cavite. The respondents are asked

regarding on what they think about how the Social Media helps the public during natural

disasters through Google forms. The research was conveyed during the fourth quarter of the

school year 2020-2021.

Population and Sampling Technique

We used convenience sampling (also known as haphazard or accidental sampling)

because it selects a specific group of people who are most conveniently available. For example,

it may be more convenient and cost-effective to sample respondents at school, in the surrounding

area, or from a pool of friends and neighbors. This method of sampling highly depends on the

researcher's judgment in selecting sample items. In other words, the researcher chooses which

items to include in the sample.

Data Gathering Procedure

The Researchers use a survey as the tool in gathering data for this study.

Researchers had allotted time, effort, and cooperation in developing their questionnaire to serve

its intent to the respondents. The survey is composed of questions from related research along

with individual questions developed by the researchers. Each question in the survey is may be

chosen by the respondents namely: agree, strongly agree, disagree, strongly disagree, and
Page 13 of 14
 Immaculate Conception Academy
South Campus

undecided. We used the Likert scale in the questionnaire to determine whether a respondent

agreed or disagreed with a statement. After the teachers approved the questionnaire, copies were

distributed online to the 30 Langkaan 1 respondents.

Research Instrument

The researchers created a questionnaire on Google forms and send it to the people

in Langkaan I. Appropriate questions related to the study and the impact of social media on

natural disasters are asked in this questionnaire. Each question was about the impact of social

media during national disasters.

Statistical Treatment

Page 14 of 14