Social representations of the Doce River and its floodings in Governador Valadares/Brazil

Abstract

The regular floods of the Rio Doce poses great inconveniences to the residents of Governador Valadares, exposing them to epidemiological risks due to the pollution in the river water. The livelihoods and cultural practices of people living on the banks of a river are created and recreated through their experiences, senses, and social representations. Thus this study characterizes the social representations of the residents of Governador Valadares that were affected or not by the Rio Doce floods. The free association of words technique with answers justification was used to raise the representations of 268 residents of Governador Valadares in relation to Rio Doce and its floods. The social representations of the two groups were compared. This study is based on the theory of social representations, namely the central core theory, which contains a multiple methodological approach that associates qualitative and quantitative aspects in the collection and analysis of data. The data analyzed by the software Ensemble of Programs Permettant l'Analyze des Évocations (EVOC) were classified in four quadrants. Residents affected or not by the floods signify the Rio Doce as a polluted river, with pollution being the central nucleus. The "loss" is the probable central nucleus of the word Flood evoked by people living in Governador Valadares, affected or not by the flood. Central nuclei pollution of the Rio Doce and loss due to flood between affected and non-affected residents suggests that there is some degree of homogeneity in the representational thinking between the two groups. The Rio Doce and its floods were expressions able to yield social representations, because they are intimate objects to the citizens of Governador Valadares, evoking positive and negative feelings and meanings around them. The mechanisms of adaptation to each new flood and the resilience of those who have experienced the various current floods can be understood from the experiences of those who have suffered the event.