Exploring Risk Communication

Exploring Risk Communication presents a systematic planning approach to risk communication. Risk communication is seen by many as an important tool for managing technological, environmental, and natural risks. The book's goal is to improve risk communication processes in these areas between private and public risk communication sources and the public. The systematic planning approach focuses on research activities which are considered to be diagnostic tools providing insight into the public's reactions to risks and into the public's cognitive abilities to process risk information. These studies give us the necessary ingredients for an adequate risk communication from the audience side of the risk communication process. Evaluation studies are considered necessary to monitor the effectiveness of the communication. Exploring Risk Communication provides a review of current research in risk communication, focusing on perceived trust and credibility of risk communication sources, and arguments in risk messages, risk comparison, and framing of risk. Special attention is paid to the mass media context of risks and its impact on public perception. Finally, the potential of the new interactive media for risk communication is reviewed. The authors have performed several communication studies in the risk area, working from their social psychological background. This results in a monograph interesting to those working on risk communication issues on an academic level, but the systematic planning approach is also a useful frame of reference for risk communication practitioners, or for those who are just interested in the often complex risk communication issues.

Inhalt

Preface. 1: Hazards and Risks. 1.1 Several hazard events. 1.2. The risk communication aspects of these events. 1.3. Risk awareness. 1.4. Risk: a problem of communication? 1.5. Hazards and risks, a definition. 1.6. Risk management. 1.7. The relevancy of risk communication. 2: Risk Communication. 2.1. What is communication. 2.2. A communication model. 2.3. Risk communication, definition and goals. 2.4. Some normative considerations. 2.5. Risk communication: a systematic planning approach. 2.6. Communication theories applicable to risk communication. 2.7. Some final remarks. 3: The Context of Risk Communication: The Mass Media. 3.1. The production of (risk) news. 3.2. Theories on mass media effects. 3.3. Media hazard-and- risk content. 3.4. The impact of hazard and risk coverage on the public. 3.5. News media as context of the public perception of risk. 4: The Risk Communication Audience. 4.1. Judging and experiencing hazards and risks. 4.2. Risk perception. 4.3. Risk attitudes and behavior. 4.4. Appraisal, emotions, and coping. 4.5. Coping with stressful events. 4.6. Psychological reactions to disaster warnings. 4.7. Some concluding remarks about the risk communication audience. 5: Influences of Risk Messages. 5.1. Type of arguments in risk communication. 5.2. A Dutch field experiment in risk communication. 5.3. Effects of probabilistic risk information. 5.4. Risk comparison. 5.5. Framing of positive and negative arguments. 5.6. Reducing ambiguity in risk communication: explicit conclusions. 5.7. Some concluding remarks about risk messages. 6: The Sources of Risk Messages. 6.1. The relevancy of risk communication sources. 6.2. Source characteristics in communication. 6.3. Preferences for risk communication sources. 6.4. The impact of risk communication sources. 6.5. Some final remarks on risk communication sources. 7: Risk Communication Media. 7.1. Traditional' versusnew' media. 7.2. Media characteristics. 7.3. Differences in effect between media? 7.4. The new media in risk communication. 7.5. Some concluding remarks on risk communication media. 8: Risk Communication Revisited and Future Developments. 8.1. The systematic planning approach to risk communication. 8.2. Risk communication's research agenda. References. Subject Index. Author Index.