Unrealistic Pessimism

Doliński, Dariusz; Gromski, Wojciech; Zawisza, Ewa

doi:10.1080/00224545.1987.9713735

Cited by 100 publications

(77 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…In a study addressing the link between perceived risk and behavior among 516 workers from eight different companies, Arezes and Miguel (2008) showed that the higher the perceived risk, the more the workers mentioned wearing hearing protection. In addition, shortly after the nuclear accident at Chernobyl in Ukraine (about a week), Dolinski et al (1987) found that the Polish who perceived themselves as relatively invulnerable to radioactive diseases were less likely to take precautions than those who felt that they were not more exposed than others. Similarly, in a meta-analysis encompassing 43 studies on links between perceived risk and preventive behaviors, Brewer et al (2007) showed that perceptions of risk likelihood, as well as feelings of vulnerability and risk seriousness, were variables that significantly predicted prevention behaviors.…”

Section: Perceived Risk and Safetymentioning

confidence: 99%

Safety climate, perceived risk, and involvement in safety management

Kouabenan

Ngueutsa

Mbaye³

2015

Safety Science

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a b s t r a c tThis article examines the relationship between safety climate, risk perception and involvement in safety management by first-line managers (FLM). Sixty-three FLMs from two French nuclear plants answered a questionnaire measuring perceived workplace safety climate, perceived risk, and involvement in safety management. We hypothesized that a positive perception of safety climate would promote substantial involvement in safety management, and that this effect would be stronger than the perceived-risk effect. We also expected that safety climate dimensions would have a different impact on involvement in safety management. Especially, we expected climate dimensions dealing with safety-related exchanges between managers and their supervisees to be more related to FLMs' involvement in safety management. As expected, perceived risk, as well as safety climate, was related to FLMs' involvement in safety management: the more they perceived risks as probable and serious for their supervisees, the more involved they got in safety management. Similarly, FLMs who perceived a good safety climate in their company reported getting more involved in safety management than did FLMs who perceived a poor safety climate. Moreover, the results showed that safety climate was the key variable because it completely mediated the effect of perceived risk on involvement in safety management. Another important result showed that immediate supervisor encouragement was more influential than senior management views on safety. Furthermore, the fact of being called upon by supervisees on safety issues prompted the FLMs to be more involved in safety management. Possible avenues for improving the involvement of FLMs in safety management are suggested.

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Section: Perceived Risk and Safetymentioning

confidence: 99%

Safety climate, perceived risk, and involvement in safety management

Kouabenan

Ngueutsa

Mbaye³

2015

Safety Science

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“…In the health belief model (Janz & Becker, 1984) and protection motivation theory (Rogers, 1975, 1983), for example, perceived susceptibility (together with other concepts, such as perceived severity, perceived benefits, and perceived barriers) plays a significant role in predicting individuals’ likelihood of taking preventive action. Yet, researchers who theorize a causal relation between perceived risk and behavioral action have found both positive (Dolinski, Gromski, & Zawisza, 1987; Larwood, 1978; Weinstein, 1982, 1983; Weinstein, Sandman, & Roberts, 1990) and negative (Svenson, Fischhoff, & MacGregor, 1985; van der Velde, Hooijkaas, & Pligt, 1991) associations, and still others have reported an absence of significant associations (Joseph et al, 1987; Robertson, 1977; Svenson et al, 1985). Systematic reviews and meta-analyses have shown small, although significant, relationships between risk perception and likelihood of action (Floyd, Prentice-Dunn, & Rogers, 2000; Milne, Sheeran, & Orbell, 2000; Harrison, Mullen, & Green, 1992).…”

Section: The Risk Perception Attitude Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Information Seeking About Global Climate Change Among Adolescents: The Role of Risk Perceptions, Efficacy Beliefs, and Parental Influences

Mead

Roser-Renouf

Rimal

et al. 2012

Atlantic Journal of Communication

122

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Global climate change is likely to have significant impacts on public health. Effective communication is critical to informing public decision making and behavior to mitigate climate change. An effective method of audience segmentation, the risk perception attitude (RPA) framework has been previously tested with other health behaviors and classifies people into 4 groups on the basis of their perceptions of risk and beliefs about personal efficacy. The 4 groups – indifference (low risk, weak efficacy), proactive (low risk, strong efficacy), avoidance (high risk, weak efficacy), and responsive (high risk, strong efficacy) – are hypothesized to differ in their self-protective behaviors and in their motivations to seek information. In this paper, we extend the RPA framework in two ways. First, we use it at the household level to determine whether parental classifications into the 4 groups are associated with their teenage children’s classification into the same 4 groups. Second, we predict adolescent information-seeking behaviors on the basis of their and their parents’ membership in the 4 RPA groups. Results (N = 523 parent-adolescent pairs) indicated that parental membership in the 4 RPA groups was significantly associated with children’s membership in the same 4 groups. Furthermore, the RPA framework was a significant predictor of adolescent information-seeking: those in the responsive and avoidance groups sought more information on climate change than the indifference group. Family communication on global warming was positively associated with adolescents’ information-seeking. Implications for interventions are discussed.

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“…If there were no such distortions, in fact, we would perceive the risks inherent in consciously dangerous activities-such as smoking or driving without a seatbelt-and this would reflect badly on our self image. Interestingly, in some conditions not only does the optimistic bias disappear but it is replaced by pessimistic bias (Dolinsky, Gromsky, and Zawinsza 1986), a tendency that is apparently correlated to the nature of the risk. If, in fact, the optimistic bias characterizes risks that are incidental, potential, and familiar, pessimistic bias corresponds to risks perceived as common, real, and unfamiliar (e.g., the health effects linked to radiation following a nuclear accident).…”

Section: Unrealistic Optimismmentioning

confidence: 99%

How to Make Decisions in An Uncertain World: Heuristics, Biases, and Risk Perception

Maldonato

Dell'Orco

2011

World Futures

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From the seventies onward a large quantity of theoretical and empirical studies have investigated the heuristic principles and cognitive strategies that individuals use to deal with risky and uncertain situations. This research has shown how the explicative and predictive shortcomings of normative risk analysis depend in many respects on undervaluing the continuous interaction between the individual and the environment. There are factors that, day by day, represent significant obstacles to decision making.

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Unrealistic Pessimism

Cited by 100 publications

References 6 publications

Safety climate, perceived risk, and involvement in safety management

Safety climate, perceived risk, and involvement in safety management

Information Seeking About Global Climate Change Among Adolescents: The Role of Risk Perceptions, Efficacy Beliefs, and Parental Influences

How to Make Decisions in An Uncertain World: Heuristics, Biases, and Risk Perception

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