Disaster Resilience of Korean Cities Using Data Envelopment Analysis

Abstract

This study sought to assess disaster resilience in Korean metropolitan cities and explore the factors influencing disaster management in these cities. Statistical data from 17 metropolitan cities and provinces in Korea spanning the years 2016 to 2020 were collected. Data envelopment analysis (DEA), a method for estimating relative efficiency using multiple input and output variables, was employed to calculate the disaster resilience scores of these cities. The results indicate higher level of disaster resilience in capital regions and large cities in Korea, with social and economic characteristics significantly influencing resilience. Moreover, the study reveals that robust infrastructure, particularly in terms of housing, strongly impacts resilience scores. The use of DEA allows for the practical evaluation of relative resilience scores without requiring weighted value calculations, making it an effective methodology for assessing city resilience. This study aimed to assess how well Korean metropolitan cities are prepared for disasters and understand what factors affect their disaster management. We collected statistics data on the social, economic, infrastructure, community capital, and institutions of 17 Korean metropolitan cities and provinces from 2016 to 2020. We used a method called data envelopment analysis (DEA) to figure out how well these cities are handling disasters. The results show that capital regions and large cities in Korea are better at handling disasters. This is because factors such as social and economic characteristics have a significant impact on their ability to respond to disasters. Additionally, having strong infrastructure, especially when it comes to housing, plays a big role in how well a city can respond to disasters. Using DEA allowed us to evaluate how well cities are prepared for disasters without needing complicated calculations, making it a useful method for assessing city readiness for disasters.