IN SEARCH OF ALTRUISTIC COMMUNITY - PATTERNS OF SOCIAL SUPPORT MOBILIZATION FOLLOWING HURRICANE HUGO

Twelve months after Hurricane Hugo, 1,000 disaster victims and nonvict ims were asked about social support they exchanged following the hurri cane. Victims of disaster received and provided very high levels of ta ngible, informational, and emotional support. Disaster exposure (loss and harm) was a strong predictor of help received and a modest predict or of help provided. However postdisaster help was nor distributed equ ally and disaster exposure was more strongly related to social support in some groups than in others. Race, education, and age most consiste ntly moderated the impact of disaster exposure on receipt of postdisas ter support. Blacks and less educated victims received less help than similarly affected victims who were white or more educated Relative di sadvantage of being old in receiving support was not the case for thos e elderly disaster victims who experienced threats to their lives or h ealth. Some subgroups of victims were relied upon disproportionately f or providing assistance. Implications for social support research are addressed.