Applying the theory of dynamic capabilities, this research explores the procedures and the outcomes of adaptations in disaster relief nonprofit organizations. Using the in-depth interviews and survey data from the managers of disaster relief nonprofit organizations in Arizona, Florida, and New Jersey, this research answers three key questions: 1) How do disaster relief nonprofit organizations apply their dynamic capabilities to make adaptations? 2) What are the impacts of dynamic capabilities, including sensing, learning, integrating, and coordinating capabilities, on the performance of disaster relief nonprofit organizations in service provision, public policy engagement, and community social capital cultivation? 3) Taking the network of Voluntary/Community Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD/COAD) as an example, can the dynamic capabilities of disaster relief nonprofit organizations explain the variation of network engagement and the gained benefits from the network among the VOAD/COAD members? The results show that the procedures of adaptation in disaster relief nonprofit organizations are associated with a rhizomic rather than a linear approach, which is implied by the theory of dynamic capabilities. Strategic connectivity, temporal simultaneity, and directional flexibility are the three critical features of the rhizome model. Additionally, dynamic capabilities significantly influence organizational performance in service provision, public policy engagement, and social capital cultivation, although sensing, learning, integrating, and coordinating capabilities shape performance differently. Moreover, network engagement, as an uncommon practice for disaster relief nonprofit organizations, is also impacted by the dynamic capabilities of disaster relief nonprofit organizations. The result shows that dynamic capabilities, especially learning capability, can promote the acquired benefits of disaster relief nonprofit organizations by bringing them more support in volunteer management and financial opportunities. The findings not only advance the current discussion about nonprofit engagement in disaster management but also add knowledge on dynamic capabilities in the third sector. The exploration of adaptations in disaster relief nonprofit organizations and the operation of the VOAD/COAD network provides valuable implications to both nonprofit managers and government officials.

The roles of American Universities/colleges assets, knowledge and partnerships with local governments during disasters and emergencies become more important but have not been emphasized sufficiently in the scholarship community. Universities/colleges have provided disaster services in partnership with local government through different ways: providing facilities and logistical support (e.g., disaster sheltering), critical knowledge support (e.g., disaster information forecasting), and human resources and special expertise support (e.g., university hospitals and voluntary work of nursing and medical students/faculty). Through 34 interviews with emergency managers from both universities/colleges and local governments, and a national survey of 362 university emergency managers, this dissertation finds that: First, previously established partnerships between universities/colleges and local governments can reduce coordination costs when disasters happen and can facilitate new partnerships on disaster preparedness. Second, local government capacity gap in responding to disaster needs is a critical precondition for universities/colleges to participate in the disaster service co-provision, which is not specified or examined by other co-production, co-creation, or co-management theories. Third, internal coordination efforts within universities/colleges can facilitate external coordination activities with local governments to guarantee efficient disaster service provision. Fourth, a disaster resilience culture needs to be facilitated within universities/colleges to develop a robust disaster response plan. Furthermore, first response providers’ health and wellbeing should get more attention from universities and local governments to maintain a sustainable and healthy workforce as well as efficient disaster response.

Management of emergency or crisis events relies on the collaborative efforts of a wide range of organizations. How to coordinate their efforts becomes a pressing challenge for public administration. This three-essay dissertation informs our understanding of public agencies’ inter-organizational coordination in preparation for and response to emergencies and disasters. The first essay provides an overview of emergency coordination research by systematically reviewing the fragmented inter-disciplinary literature on the topic for the past two decades. Through the analyses of 64 articles, the essay maps major theoretical traditions of emergency coordination research and identifies the need for further theoretical explorations. The syntheses of findings from the literature provide empirical strategies for improving response coordination effectiveness. The review reveals that current research predominantly focuses on response coordination with little understanding of coordination at other emergency management phases. Building upon the first essay, the second essay examines coordination in the preparedness phase. By introducing the configurational approach to emergency management research, the study explores which configurations of organizational attributes – and environmental characteristics – lead to active emergency preparedness coordination. A configurational model for preparedness coordination is proposed along with three propositions. The study conducts a large-N fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) to analyze U.S. public transit agencies’ inter-organizational coordination in preparation for extreme weather events. Findings demonstrate the value of configurational thinking and suggest the importance of managerial commitment. The third essay extends the current inquiry on response coordination by reorienting the focus to the role of human agency. Drawing from institutional logic theory, the study identifies the systems of cultural elements (i.e., institutional logic) that affect inter-organizational response coordination actions. Influential managerial practices are also specified. The empirical context of this study is the local government's response to the Covid-19 pandemic in Arizona. Findings demonstrate that coordination actions are under the influence of professional and community logics. Empirical evidence also corroborates the importance of management practices for coordination. Taken together, the dissertation contributes to emergency management research by engaging novel theoretical perspectives and diverse methodological approaches. It provides actionable strategies for public managers to improve coordination effectiveness.

Within the scope of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), this thesis reviews some major challenges during mass evacuations, illustrated by incidents during actual mass evacuation scenarios, and identifies several potential applications of autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the effort to ease the transition of evacuees out of a disaster area. System requirements and example UAV platforms are identified for applications in which autonomous UAVs monitor traffic conditions along evacuation routes, distribute information to the public, and establish a communications network for first responders.