Dr. Chris Ellis - Member - The Prepared

Discussions

Reply to: 60 Minutes segment this Sunday Nov 6 about TP and how sane prepping has gone mainstream! Posted November 7, 2022

It’s a simple study. Randomly divide people into a control group and the experimentation groups. Ask them how many days of preps do they currently have? Then, give the standard disaster pitch. Control group gets the standard info of 3 days (FEMA) or 14 days (Red Cross). Experimentation groups get different numbers. For example, maybe they are told prepping in America is rising and 30 days is the number to shoot for. Follow up with them 90 days later and ask them again the days of preps they have. If social contagion is a thing, then the groups that received the higher numbers should report higher average days of preps. It’s like the toilet paper contagion early on in COVID. We do things because we see/hear about others doing them.

Reply to: 60 Minutes segment this Sunday Nov 6 about TP and how sane prepping has gone mainstream! Posted November 7, 2022

If I ever get the time and funding, I have a survey experiment designed to get after this aspect of prepping and social contagion/influence. Based upon the findings, it could influence how FEMA and other organizations like the Red Cross message to the masses.

Reply to: Prepper demographics updated with 2020 FEMA survey data: over 20M people in the US alone! Posted November 6, 2022

To all who read this, I welcome constructive feedback. I’m also attempting to post the datasheet (over 700,000 cells of information) on a publicly accessible location. Cheers and keep prepping.

Reply to: 60 Minutes segment this Sunday Nov 6 about TP and how sane prepping has gone mainstream! Posted November 6, 2022

Brad, that cabin looks great. Thanks again to you and John. Best wishes for all your future endeavors.

Prepper demographics updated with 2020 FEMA survey data: over 20M people in the US alone!

MetaNews 9

21

Posted November 6, 2022

Reply to: If our public servants focused on enlightening the unpreppared, what would they say? Posted December 14, 2021

There is no “one way” to encourage the unprepared, because threats and reactions are so individualized. But, governments can (and do) have great success throughout the world using various techniques. So, two things: 1) study success stories like Japan, Switzerland, and Israel. 2) Fear can be a PART of your message, but should NOT be the focus (there are great studies on this). Instead, the focus should be agency; what you can do, what you can choose. Show how prepping can be rewarding and practical (gardening, soap making, colorful eggs from different chicken varieties, etc). Give examples that are not too difficult. And yes, sell it like insurance; connect it to “normal” rather than “radical.”

Prepper demographics updated with 2020 FEMA survey data: over 20M people in the US alone!

MetaNews 9

21

Posted November 6, 2022

Reply to: 60 Minutes segment this Sunday Nov 6 about TP and how sane prepping has gone mainstream! Posted November 7, 2022

It’s a simple study. Randomly divide people into a control group and the experimentation groups. Ask them how many days of preps do they currently have? Then, give the standard disaster pitch. Control group gets the standard info of 3 days (FEMA) or 14 days (Red Cross). Experimentation groups get different numbers. For example, maybe they are told prepping in America is rising and 30 days is the number to shoot for. Follow up with them 90 days later and ask them again the days of preps they have. If social contagion is a thing, then the groups that received the higher numbers should report higher average days of preps. It’s like the toilet paper contagion early on in COVID. We do things because we see/hear about others doing them.

Reply to: 60 Minutes segment this Sunday Nov 6 about TP and how sane prepping has gone mainstream! Posted November 7, 2022

If I ever get the time and funding, I have a survey experiment designed to get after this aspect of prepping and social contagion/influence. Based upon the findings, it could influence how FEMA and other organizations like the Red Cross message to the masses.

Reply to: Prepper demographics updated with 2020 FEMA survey data: over 20M people in the US alone! Posted November 6, 2022

To all who read this, I welcome constructive feedback. I’m also attempting to post the datasheet (over 700,000 cells of information) on a publicly accessible location. Cheers and keep prepping.

Reply to: 60 Minutes segment this Sunday Nov 6 about TP and how sane prepping has gone mainstream! Posted November 6, 2022

Brad, that cabin looks great. Thanks again to you and John. Best wishes for all your future endeavors.

Reply to: If our public servants focused on enlightening the unpreppared, what would they say? Posted December 14, 2021

There is no “one way” to encourage the unprepared, because threats and reactions are so individualized. But, governments can (and do) have great success throughout the world using various techniques. So, two things: 1) study success stories like Japan, Switzerland, and Israel. 2) Fear can be a PART of your message, but should NOT be the focus (there are great studies on this). Instead, the focus should be agency; what you can do, what you can choose. Show how prepping can be rewarding and practical (gardening, soap making, colorful eggs from different chicken varieties, etc). Give examples that are not too difficult. And yes, sell it like insurance; connect it to “normal” rather than “radical.”