Perceptions of those exposed to the 2021 Manavgat fire on the role of religious institutions and religious officials in coping with the fire and the relationship between the impact of the event and cultural virtues: A mixed-method research

The aim of this research is to examine the relationship between the impact of the 2021 Manavgat fire on individuals and cultural virtues (benevolence, spirituality, and contentment) and to reveal the role of religious beliefs and practices, religious officials, and religious institutions in coping with the fire. The research was conducted 2.5 years after the fire and is based on fieldwork conducted in 19 neighborhoods and villages affected by the fire. 94.5% of the sample consists of individuals living in rural Manavgat. In the study, a mixed method was used in which qualitative and quantitative data were evaluated together. In the qualitative part of the study, 77 fire victims were interviewed and data were obtained through three basic questions asked to the participants, regarding the role of religious beliefs and practices, religious officials and religious institutions in coping with the fire. In the quantitative part of the study, in order to test the relationship between the impact of the fire event and cultural virtues (helpfulness, spirituality, conviction), a survey was applied to 325 fire victims, and the data were obtained with the personal information form, fire experience form, Impact of Events Scale (IES) and Cultural Virtues Scales (Helpfulness, Spirituality, Conviction) (CVS) included in this survey. Qualitative data were examined under three themes and ten categories using the content analysis method. According to the findings; the fire caused serious material losses and temporary or permanent significant psychological reactions in individuals. One out of 77 participants stated that any religious belief or practice did not help them in coping with the fire, whereas 76 participants stated that religious beliefs and practices supported them. Two participants said that they initially rebelled against God's will, and three participants said that they thought about suicide, but they gave up these thoughts with the help of their spirituality and religious beliefs. In addition, 72 out of 77 participants stated that mosque imams and other religious officials took an active role in the field during the disaster process and provided material and moral support to the public. 5 participants stated that they did not see religious officials in the field. Participants also stated that mosques provided material and moral support to fire victims as crisis coordination centers during the fire process. These findings reveal that religious beliefs and practices, religious institutions and religious officials played an active role in coping with the fire in the 2021 Manavgat fire. Quantitative data were analyzed with SPSS package program. As a result of the analysis, it was determined that the views of the participants regarding Cultural Virtues Scales and Impact of Events Scale differed statistically significantly in general according to their demographic characteristics, and that women, the elderly, those with low education level, farmers, those with low income level, those who were injured, those who had relatives and acquaintances injured and lost their lives, those who had a lot of property loss, and those who lived in tents and prefabricated houses were more affected by the experienced trauma. It was determined that there was a positive and moderate relationship between the Cultural Virtues Scales of Helpfulness, Spirituality and Contentment, and that spirituality played a role in individuals' coping with fire by encouraging contented living and helpfulness. It was determined that there were positive and weak correlations between the Impact of Events Scale sub-dimensions of Reliving, Avoidance and Overstimulation and spirituality and contentment, and that although spirituality did not completely eliminate traumatic symptoms, it was effective in the coping process by enabling individuals to confront the trauma and make sense of what was experienced. When quantitative and qualitative findings are compared, it is seen that the data largely confirm and complement each other.