Risk and vulnerability assessments as input to decision making - An interview study describing how risk and vulnerability assessments are utilised for decision making on the national and regional levels of the Swedish disaster management system.

Abstract: Risk and vulnerability assessments are an important part of the Swedish disaster management system and can be used as input for decision making. Today disaster management decisions are made on all levels in Sweden depending on the extent of the decisions. The purpose of this thesis has been to perform a descriptive study of how risk and vulnerability assessments are utilised as input to decision making in the field of disaster management on the national and regional levels in Sweden. Twelve interviews, six with regional respondents and six with national respondents, were performed. The conclusion is that risk and vulnerability assessments are an appreciated tool for decision support. Despite this, the connection between the assessments and risk-reducing measures is weak since it is unclear how suggested measures are implemented and followed-up on. There is also a frustration regarding the system. This frustration is deeper on the national level compared to the regional level.