Developing a Valid and Reliable Gender Analysis Tool Applied in Disaster Management: A Community-Based Survey.

OBJECTIVES

Women and men are assigned roles and responsibilities based on their gender in all contexts. Measuring gender-based differences through gender analysis can help understand who will be at greater risk in disasters. Thus, the present study is aimed to develop a valid and reliable gender analysis tool to collect accurate and necessary gender-disaggregated information in disaster-affected regions.

METHODS

A mix method approach using qualitative and quantitative studies was applied for conducting this study. A total of 20 people affected by the earthquakes and floods and 10 key informants were interviewed in the qualitative stage. The validity and reliability of the tool were measured using the experts as well as women and men living in the destroyed villages of Razavi Khorasan province during the quantitative stage. The Graneheim approach and SPSS software were used to analyze the data collected in both stages.

RESULTS

At the first stage, 7 categories were extracted from the data, namely, livelihood status, social status, health, household/family management, reconstruction, welfare and educational facilities, and disaster prevention. The results of content validity ratio (0.69) and content validity index (0.88) confirmed that the tool is valid. The amount of Cronbach's alpha (0.75) and test-retest (0.83) examination indicated that the tool was also reliable. The results of content validity and reliability measurements approved that the gender analysis tool can be applied for postdisaster gender analysis surveys.

CONCLUSIONS

It is highly suggested to use the information provided by the gender analysis tool for future disaster management plans, programs, and policies in health systems.