When minutes matter: A university emergency notification system dataset

Area of Science:

• Health Education
• Higher Education Emergency Preparedness
• Information Systems

Background:

• Campus emergency notification systems are crucial for student safety.
• Existing data on student perceptions of these systems is limited.
• Understanding student experiences is key to optimizing emergency communication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide open access data on undergraduate students' perceptions and use of campus emergency notification systems.
• To inform the development of more effective emergency communication plans in higher education.
• To facilitate future research and evaluation of emergency notification systems.

Main Methods:

• A self-administered online survey was used to collect data from 746 undergraduate students.
• The survey included items on the Technology Acceptance Model, system usage, self-efficacy, and demographics.
• Open-ended questions gathered student suggestions for system improvement.

Main Results:

• Data includes student perceptions of usefulness, ease of use, attitudes, and behavioral intentions regarding emergency notifications.
• Information on actual message usage and self-efficacy to respond is provided.
• Descriptive statistics and open-ended response frequencies are available.

Conclusions:

• This dataset offers valuable insights for campus emergency planners and health education specialists.
• The data can guide improvements in emergency alert message content and delivery.
• This work represents the first open-access dataset on higher education emergency notification systems.