Effect on Elderly Social Relations of Relocation during Recovery Process after Tohoku Earthquake

Mitoko Nakashima (Kagawa University)

This paper examines how the relocation of people’s dwelling in recovery process after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake affects elderly social relations based on interactional exchanges of daily greeting, mingling and gathering, and community activities in order to identify necessary conditions for preventing social isolation of the elderly in disaster-stricken areas.

From July 2011 to October 2018, we conducted questionnaire survey research and in-depth interviews of residents of temporary housing (TH) sites (20 of 35 sites), recovery housings (RH) (24 of 25 sites), and collective relocation sites (all 21 sites) in Ofunato City, Iwate Prefecture.

From the analysis of these data, we derived the following results. 1) Through the processes of repeated relocations, social relations they had established at one site were broken and were lost due to relocation. Even if they made new relations with neighbors in the TH, they had to relinquish them when they move to RH or collective relocation sites. 2) Degree of continuity of original community leads to differences in conditions of post-disaster community. For example, residents’ associations were formed early and various community activities were built up on TH sites where the majority of residents were from the same settlement, while establishment of the associations were late and communities were less active onsites where residents were from different settlements. 3) Social relations newly acquired through daily exchanges could contribute toward preventing social isolation of the elderly. Even in a case of TH with less continuity of original community, some of the elderly acquired new friends by attending monthly tea parties and various events held at assembly hall and expected to move in RH with them for relief and safety of their future lives.