Perceiving protection: Public interpretation of institutions in managed flood settings

This paper presents a systematic review of 35 empirical studies published between 2010 and 2024 that explore public interpretations of institutional presence and action in flood-prone environments shaped by structured flood management systems. Focusing on levees, dams, reservoirs, and drainage infrastructure across 21 countries, the review investigates how communities understand governance roles and responsibility, especially where multi-level or fragmented arrangements dominate. Studies were selected based on criteria emphasizing flood risk perception, institutional trust or responsibility, and preparedness behavior in structurally managed settings. Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method approaches were included and coded for governance scale, infrastructure type, and interpretive categories such as trust, fairness, and institutional visibility.

The review synthesizes findings across diverse geographies, governance scales, and infrastructure types, identifying common interpretive patterns in how people make sense of institutional roles in flood-risk management. Thematic analysis reveals six key dynamics: (1) infrastructure as a producer of risk, (2) governance fragmentation and public confusion, (3) preparedness as an interpretive practice, (4) trust and the levee effect, (5) fairness and timing in institutional response, and (6) recognition and communicative legibility. Across these themes, preparedness behavior emerges not solely as a response to risk knowledge or hazard experience, but as a reflection of how institutional action is seen, trusted, or contested.