Locus of an Emergent Field

The field of Emergency Management is in a period of dramatic knowledge expansion. Practitioners from diverse public and private organizations and all levels of government are enjoying increased visibility and resources in combating a string of media enriched disaster events. A growing number of scholars and practitioners from multiple originating disciplines are bringing together an ever-increasing body of written work to support the recognition of Emergency Management as a profession and as a field for academic inquiry. This development in the United States has been propelled by the expansion of emergency management issues across disciplines, the establishment of a large number of academic programs across the country, and increasing visibility of disaster and its consequences, including the most recent emphasis on terrorism and homeland security. This study seeks to determine the degree of alignment between the perceptions of academics and practitioners in the field. To that end, this study addresses two research questions: 1) based on existing academic curricula, what are some of the core knowledge components of Emergency Management and what is the relative emphasis placed on each of the identified components; and 2) how and to what extent does the curricula content create intersection between originating disciplines and institutions of emergency management practice, or more plainly stated, between academics and practitioners.