Psycho-social determinants of crisis readiness: A cross-sectional study of Bangladeshi university students

University students play a critical role in community resilience, but often remain underprepared for diverse crises, including natural hazards and social emergencies. This study examines the psycho-social dimensions of crisis preparedness-factual knowledge, metacognitive awareness, self-efficacy, and social responsibility-among 441 students from private, public, and national universities in coastal regions of Bangladesh. The findings reveal that students exhibit relatively strong self-efficacy and social responsibility, while gaps persist in factual knowledge and metacognitive awareness, indicating limited technical understanding and institutional preparedness. Social responsibility linked with self-efficacy, and self-efficacy significantly influenced metacognitive awareness. Gender differences were minimal, except for higher female engagement in fire preparedness. These results underscore the interdependent nature of cognitive, reflective, and ethical dimensions in shaping effective crisis readiness. The study provides actionable guidance for educators and policymakers to design integrated interventions that cultivate confident, reflective, and socially responsible students capable of responding effectively to complex crises.