scholarly journals The Testing Multiplier: Fear vs Containment

Author(s):  
Francesco Furno

AbstractThis paper studies the economic effects of testing during the outbreak of a novel epidemic disease. I propose a model where testing permits isolation of the infected and provides agents with information about the prevalence and lethality of the disease. Additional testing reduces the perceived lethality of the disease, but might increase the perceived risk of infection. As a result, more testing could increase the perceived risk of dying from the disease - i.e. “stoke fear” - and cause a fall in economic activity, despite improving health outcomes. Two main insights emerge. First, increased testing is beneficial to the economy and pays for itself if performed at a sufficiently large scale, but not necessarily otherwise. Second, heterogeneous risk perceptions across age-groups can have important aggregate consequences. For a SARS-CoV-2 calibration of the model, heterogeneous risk perceptions across young and old individuals mitigate GDP losses by 50% and reduce the death toll by 30% relative to a scenario in which all individuals have the same perceptions of risk.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Palacios ◽  
Yichun Fan ◽  
Erez Yoeli ◽  
Jianghao Wang ◽  
Yuchen Chai ◽  
...  

As the COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end, governments find themselves facing a new challenge: motivating citizens to resume economic activity. What is an effective way to do so? We investigate this question using a field experiment in the city of Zhengzhou, China immediately following the end of the city's COVID-19 lockdown. Using self-reports and GPS trajectory data from participants' phones, we assessed the effect of providing information about the proportion of participants' neighbors who have resumed economic activity. We find that informing individuals about their neighbors' plans to visit restaurants increases the fraction of participants visiting restaurants by 12 percentage points (37%), amongst those participants who underestimated the proportion of neighbors who resumed economic activity. Those who overestimated did not respond by reducing restaurant attendance, so the intervention yielded no `boomerang' effect. We explore moderators, risk perceptions, and a placebo intervention for parks. All of these analyses suggest our intervention worked by reducing the perceived risk of going to restaurants.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chantal C. Cantarelli ◽  
David Oglethorpe ◽  
Bert van Wee

AbstractLock-in is defined as the tendency to continue with an inefficient decision or project proposal. The front-end phase is critical to project success, yet most studies have focused on lock-in in the implementation phase. Moreover, little is known about the way in which decision-makers perceive the risk of lock-in. In this paper we identify determinants of lock-in in the front-end phase and we reveal decision-makers’ perceptions of risk of lock-in. Our findings show that risk attitudes towards lock-in vary with the level of risk aversion. However, this is not sufficiently acute to drive the level of regret needed to avoid lock-in. This implies that decision-makers do not accurately assess the risk of lock-in and as such their risk perceptions are a mediating factor in the formation of lock-in. Based on escalation of commitment, path dependency, and prospect theory, the main contribution lies in providing a more comprehensive understanding of lock-in in the front-end phase.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Douglas Brown ◽  
Lynne Coventry ◽  
Gillian V Pepper

Background Understanding COVID-19 risk perceptions and their impact on behaviour can improve the effectiveness of public health strategies in the future. Prior evidence suggests that, when people perceive uncontrollable risks to their health, they are less likely to make efforts to protect their health in those ways which they can control (e.g. through diet, exercise, and limiting alcohol intake). It is therefore important to understand the extent to which the threat of COVID-19 is perceived to be an uncontrollable risk, and to assess whether this perceived risk is associated with differences in health behaviour. MethodsWe surveyed a nationally representative sample of 496 participants, shortly after the peak of the pandemic in the UK. We collected data to assess people’s perceptions of COVID-19-related risk, and how these perceptions were associated with behaviours. We examined self-reported adherence to behaviours recommended by the UK Government and National Health Service to prevent the spread of the virus, as well as more general health behaviours. We predicted that increased perceived extrinsic mortality risk (the portion of a person’s mortality risk which they perceive to be uncontrollable) would disincentivise healthy behaviour. ResultsPerceived threat to life was found to be the most consistent predictor of reported adherence to measures designed to prevent the spread of infection. Perceived extrinsic mortality risk was found to have increased due to the pandemic, and was also associated with lower reported adherence to Government advice on diet and physical activity, as well as smoking. ConclusionsOur findings suggest that promoting a message that highlights threat to life may be effective in raising levels of adherence to measures of infection control, but may also have unintended consequences, leading to a reduction in health-promoting behaviours. We suggest that messages that highlight threat to life should be accompanied by statements of efficacy, and that messages evoking feelings of concern for others may also be effective in promoting compliance with anti-infection measures.


2014 ◽  
Vol 115 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-27
Author(s):  
James B. Hittner ◽  
Margaret A. Warner

A strong negative correlation between perceptions of risk for co-occurrent substance abuse and the variability associated with those risk perceptions was found in two independent samples.


There are good statistics for deaths in transport accidents, fires, and from accidents in the home in Great Britain, and considerable (but less comprehensive) information about injuries and material damage. Information about the causes of these events is much more scanty, and little is known about the long-term effects of accidental injury. The available data are reviewed and the nature, magnitude and frequency of various kinds of risks are analysed for different age groups and in relation to environmental and other factors. The contribution of ‘volun­tary’ actions (notably alcohol and smoking) is assessed. Finally, the extent to which both actual and perceived risk can be modified by education, engineering (modifying the design of roads, vehicles, aircraft, homes and fittings), and the enforcement of regulations and control systems is evaluated. While costs cannot easily be measured, false perceptions of risk can lead to wasteful investment, and education and information are essential if resources are to be deployed where they will do most good.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manfredi Greco ◽  
Elisa Maietti ◽  
Flavia Rallo ◽  
Chiara Reno ◽  
Davide Trerè ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTINTRODUCTIONDuring the first phase of COVID-19 pandemic, Italian medical students transitioned from in-person to remote learning. This study was carried out to early assess students’ sources of information, perceived risk of infection, knowledge and preventive practices in order to resume academic activity. The impact of training and volunteer work was also assessed.METHODSA cross-sectional online survey was conducted in May 2020 among medical students enrolled in the School of Medicine and Surgery, Bologna University.RESULTSThe analysis included 537 responses. On average students used seven sources of information on COVID-19. Scientific journals were considered the most trustworthy but they ranked only 6th in the frequency of use. Perceived risk of infection was higher for academic activities, especially in the hospital than daily living activities. Less than 50% of students reported being trained on biological risk and use of PPE. Training received was significantly associated with both perceived risk of infection and confidence in the use of PPE. Students engaged in volunteer work had higher confidence in PPE usage.DISCUSSIONAccessible scientific information and students’ engagement in spreading correct knowledge play an important role in challenging misinformation during the pandemic crisis. Students showed suboptimal knowledge about PPE use, calling for additional training. We found a moderate-high perceived risk of infection that could be mitigated with specific educational programs and by promoting voluntary work. Students’ engagement in public health emergencies (PHE) could potentially be beneficial for their training and as well as for the healthcare system.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 2652
Author(s):  
Ida bagus Surya Wijaya ◽  
Kastawan Mandala

The risks faced by customers when using the services of LPD, with attention to and maintain the quality of the company provided to customers will be added value to the LPD. The purpose of this study to determine the effect of service quality on the perception of customer value mediated by risk perception. This research was conducted at LPD Pererenan Kabupaten Badung. The sample used is 100 customers. The technique of this research is purposive sampling and analysis technique used is path analysis technique. Quality of service has a positive and significant impact on the perception of value. Perceptions of risk have a negative and significant impact on the perception of value, which means that when perceived risk perceptions of customers when using LPD services are high, the perception of customer value on LPD is low. Service quality has a negative and significant impact on risk perception. Perceptions of risk mediate the effect of service quality on the perception of customer value positively and significantly, it proves when the quality of service and perception of customer value is high then customer risk perceptions aat using LPD services low. A good LPD business should be able to maintain the quality of service provided to its customers, in terms of service. LPDs should be able to prioritize the interests of LPD customers in financial services LPD, able to establish good service quality and perception of good customer value.   Keywords: service quality, customer perception, risk perception


Author(s):  
Rachel E. Stuck ◽  
Bruce N. Walker

Perceived risk is an important component of technology acceptance and adoption. Research has explored perceived risk, and its relation to technology acceptance. However, only limited work has considered common technologies, or assessed different types of risk. This study explored perceptions of risk within 5 types (financial, performance, physical, psychological, social) and overall perceived risk, for 23 common technologies. 178 participants rated the technologies across all the types of risk. In general, the technologies were rated as mildly risky for all categories of risk, but ratings were even lower for psychological, physical, and social risk. However, individual technologies varied in their rankings. This study emphasizes the need to understand not just overall perceived risk, but also type of perceived risk. This insight can assist developers and others (e.g., marketers) to understand what types of risk must be mitigated through redesign, training, or other means to promote technology acceptance.


2021 ◽  
pp. 174569162110178
Author(s):  
Erika A. Waters ◽  
Marc T. Kiviniemi ◽  
Jennifer L. Hay ◽  
Heather Orom

Since the middle of the 20th century, perceptions of risk have been critical to understanding engagement in volitional behavior change. However, theoretical and empirical risk perception research seldom considers the possibility that risk perceptions do not simply exist: They must be formed. Thus, some people may not have formulated a perception of risk for a hazard at the time a researcher asks them, or they may not be confident in the extent to which their perception matches reality. We describe a decade-long research program that investigates the possibility that some people may genuinely not know their risk of even well-publicized hazards. We demonstrate that indications of not knowing (i.e., “don’t know” responses) are prevalent in the U.S. population, are systematically more likely to occur among marginalized sociodemographic groups, and are associated with less engagement in protective health behaviors. “Don’t know” responses are likely indications of genuinely limited knowledge and therefore may indicate populations in need of targeted intervention. This body of research suggests that not allowing participants to indicate their uncertainty may threaten the validity and generalizability of behavior-change research. We provide concrete recommendations for scientists to allow participants to express uncertainty and to analyze the resulting data.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashley Shepherd ◽  
Ruth Jepson ◽  
Andrew Watterson ◽  
Josie M. M. Evans

Objectives. We have investigated the Australian public's perceived risks on human reproductive health from a number of identified environmental hazards. Methods. A sample of 1261 subjects was interviewed. This interview included specific questions related to perceived risks of certain environmental hazards to human reproductive health. Results. Women were almost twice as likely to rank all hazards as harmful or very harmful to human reproduction than men. Age also influenced perceived risk with those in the 35 and older age groups more likely to rank lead as a harmful hazard when compared with the 18–34 group. Pesticides were identified by 84.5% of the sample as the most harmful environmental hazard to human reproduction. Conclusions. Similar to other environmental hazards, different groups of people in the general population perceive hazards relating to reproductive health differently. This information is important for both policy makers and health professionals dealing with reproductive environmental health issues.


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