Vulnerability, values and heterogeneity: one step further to understand risk perception and behaviour

Olofsson, Anna; Öhman, Susanna

doi:10.1080/13669877.2013.879485

Cited by 35 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 82 publications

(77 reference statements)

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“…Models designed to measure risk perception are contextual and value-based (Olofsson and Öhman 2015). They are context-specific as the values they analyse represent the population of a particular locality.…”

Section: Initial Discussion On Measuring Risk Perceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Therefore, the measurement of individual risk perception requires the construction of complex models that can identify patterns between variables of different nature and the interdependence of the values (Olofsson and Öhman 2015). Models designed to measure risk perception are contextual and value-based (Olofsson and Öhman 2015).…”

Section: Initial Discussion On Measuring Risk Perceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In one study, for example, Olofsson and Öhman (2015) found that heterogeneity factors provide important clues to understanding the relations between risk perception and risk behaviour. Their conclusion was that 'different groups do indeed perceive and act differently according to the kind of risk in question ' (2015:14).…”

Section: Measuring Risk Perception With Socio-economic Indicatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A third line of investigation focuses particularly on the challenges that vulnerability and exposure 2 factors exert in the perception of risks and decision-making processes. These authors posit that exposure levels, and more importantly vulnerability issues, significantly influence the undertaking of protective actions among individuals at risk (Haque and Burton 2005;Olofsson and Öhman 2015;Tierney 2006;Wisner et al 2004). Thus vulnerability, a central concept in this project, follows the definition of Berry (2002): a pre-existing condition or state defined by a set of negative attributes that cause people or communities' susceptibility to loss.…”

Section: Risk Perception and Decision Makingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Their conclusion was that 'different groups do indeed perceive and act differently according to the kind of risk in question ' (2015:14). The heterogeneity factors that Olofsson and Öhman (2015) considered in their study were gender, age, country of birth, disability and sexual orientation.…”

Section: Measuring Risk Perception With Socio-economic Indicatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Individual Risk Perception and Flood Mitigation: An Empirical Study of Protective Actions in Australia

Uehara¹

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The Australian government has increasingly expected that individuals collaborate with public efforts to reduce hazard risks by taking some action themselves. This expectation, however, has failed to consider the complexity of the decision-making process at the household level.Individual decision making is rather complex as it involves a wide range of factors that should be taken into account before the government can assess to what extent individuals at risk can effectively contribute to the reduction of hazard risks. This is where a theoretical framework makes a contribution to this thesis by guiding data collection and analysis. Thus this thesis resorts to a comprehensive socio-psychological theory to generate empirical data on the different factors affecting decision making under uncertainty.The testing of this comprehensive theoretical framework called Protection Motivation Theory focuses on the explanatory variables of risk perception ('threat appraisal') and coping measures ('coping appraisal'). Threat appraisal factors have to do with the perception of hazard risks and coping appraisal variables measure the perceived ability of an individual to take action. The novelties of this study are i) the application of this theoretical framework, which has already been tested in order countries, for the first time in Australia, more specifically among householders living in flood-prone locations in Southeast Queensland; ii) a dataset featuring significant variability in terms of vulnerability and exposure levels of the population at risk; iii) the assessment of how heuristics and biases affect decision making under uncertainty; and iv) qualitative data to unpack non-intuitive associations and understand the role that the nature of threats and protective actions play in the decisions of householders to take protective actions. An interesting finding from previous studies is that coping factors are better predictors for protective actions than risk perception. This thesis then will verify whether this association is also observed in the Australian context. However, emerging from this study, is the argument that individuals at risk living in this region make decisions which do factor in their hazard risk perceptions and their perceived capacity to take action; however, this decision-making process also take into account the vulnerability conditions of the population at risk. Also, qualitative data suggest that exposure to hazard risks shaped by the nature of the threat and the characteristics of the protective action also play a role in the decision of householders to take preventive measures that reduce or eliminate flood damage. The findings on how these conditions and circumstances influence decisions made under uncertain scenarios are the main contribution of this thesis to the literature. 3This contribution, however, is not only relevant within the academic community. If Australian authorities are to enhance the resilience of communities at risk to potential damage caused by hazards, it needs first to ha...

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Section: Initial Discussion On Measuring Risk Perceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Initial Discussion On Measuring Risk Perceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Measuring Risk Perception With Socio-economic Indicatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Risk Perception and Decision Makingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Measuring Risk Perception With Socio-economic Indicatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations