The Global Social Vulnerability Map is a composite index that was developed to measure characteristics or qualities of social systems that create the potential for loss or harm. Here, social vulnerability helps to explain why some countries will experience adverse impacts from earthquakes differentially where the linking of social capacities with demographic attributes suggests that communities with higher percentages of age dependent populations, homeless, disabled, under-educated, and foreign migrants are likely to exhibit higher social vulnerability than communities lacking these characteristics. Other relevant factors that affect the social vulnerability of populations include in-migration from foreign countries, population density, an accounting of slum populations, and international tourist arrivals.