scholarly journals Higher perceived risk of COVID-19 pandemic, higher concern for climate change: evidence from a longitudinal study in China

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanchao Gong ◽  
Yan Sun
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Risk ◽  
Climate Change Concern

Abstract COVID-19 is raging globally taking a huge toll on public health. Although there seems to be a silver lining regarding mitigation of climate change given decreased emission of greenhouse gases during the pandemic, climate disruption actually constantly keeps apace. Therefore, it is important for the public to maintain alert to climate change amid the devastating pandemic. The current longitudinal study made a preliminary exploration of the relationship between public risk perception of the pandemic and climate change and we examined two possibly competing mediators which might lead to opposite effects—negative emotions and limited cognitive resources. The results show that pandemic risk perception has positive predictive effect on climate change concern mediated by negative emotions, but public attention to climate change is not impaired by increased concern for the pandemic. We discuss the value of our results and offer inspiring advice to better address climate change during COVID-19 outbreak.

scholarly journals The Evolution Model of Public Risk Perception Based on Pandemic Spreading Theory under Perspective of COVID-19

Complexity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Yi-Cheng Zhang ◽  
Zhi Li ◽  
Guo-Bing Zhou ◽  
Nai-Ru Xu ◽  
Jia-Bao Liu
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Social Order ◽  
Prevention And Control ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Health Emergencies ◽  
Public Risk ◽  
And Control

After the occurrence of public health emergencies, due to the uncertainty of the evolution of events and the asymmetry of pandemic information, the public’s risk perception will fluctuate dramatically. Excessive risk perception often causes the public to overreact to emergencies, resulting in irrational behaviors, which have a negative impact on economic development and social order. However, low-risk perception will reduce individual awareness of prevention and control, which is not conducive to the implementation of government pandemic prevention and control measures. Therefore, it is of great significance to accurately evaluate public risk perception for improving government risk management. This paper took the evolution of public risk perception based on the COVID-19 region as the research object. First, we analyze the characteristics of infectious diseases in the evolution of public risk perception of public health emergencies. Second, we analyze the characteristics of risk perception transmission in social networks. Third, we establish the dynamic model of public risk perception evolution based on SEIR, and the evolution mechanism of the public risk perception network is revealed through simulation experiments. Finally, we provide policy suggestions for government departments to deal with public health emergencies based on the conclusions of this study.

Dynamics of Public Risk Perception and Media Coverage

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Kathrin Fischer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Demographic Change ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
Third Party ◽  
The Us ◽  
Public Risk

Many societal risks are beyond the scope of personal experience. Thus, people are increasingly dependent on third-party information to assess risks. This study examines the dynamics of public risk perception by focusing on the role of media coverage. It does so by comparing public opinion on selected societal risks, namely climate change, terrorism and demographic change over a 25-year period (1990–2015). The analysis examines risk perception in the US and Germany and provides valuable insights into how and why the public's assessment of risks differs in these countries.

scholarly journals A Comparative Analysis of Risk Perception and Coping Behaviors among Chinese Poultry Farmers Regarding Human and Poultry Infection with Avian Influenza

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (20) ◽  
pp. 3832 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bin Cui ◽  
Feifei Wang ◽  
Linda Dong-Ling Wang ◽  
Chengyun Pan ◽  
Jun Ke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Avian Influenza ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Human Infection ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Coping Behaviors ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
Poultry Farmers ◽  
And Coping

Poultry farmers face a dual risk when mutant avian influenza (AI) virus exhibits zoonotic characteristics. A/H5N1 and A/H7N9 are two principal strains of the AI virus that have captured public attention in recent years, as they have both been reported and can infect poultry and humans, respectively. Previous studies have focused either on poultry farmers’ risk perception and biosecurity preventive behaviors (BPBs) against A/H5N1 infection with poultry, or on their risk perception and personal protective behaviors (PPBs) against human infection with A/H7N9, even though these two strains often appear simultaneously. To bridge this research gap, a survey (N = 426) was conducted in the Chinese provinces of Jiangsu and Anhui to assess risk perception and coping behaviors adopted by poultry farmers facing the dual risk of these two viral strains. Paired sample t-tests revealed that farmers’ perceived risk of poultry infection with A/H5N1 was significantly higher than their perceived risk of human infection with A/H7N9, and that their reported frequency of BPBs against A/H5N1 was significantly higher than the frequency of PPBs against A/H7N9. Moreover, farmers were less familiar with AI infection in human beings compared to that in poultry, but they felt a higher sense of control regarding human AI infection. Multivariate regression analyses showed that farm size and perceived risks of both human and poultry infection with AI were positively associated with BPBs and PPBs. The findings of this research suggest that a campaign to spread knowledge about human AI infection among poultry farmers is needed, and that a policy incentive to encourage large-scale poultry farming could be effective in improving implementation of BPBs and PPBs.

Risk Perception: Experts and the Public

1998 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lennart Sjöberg
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Nuclear Waste ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Explanatory Power ◽  
Social Dilemmas ◽  
Moral Values ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
Risk Acceptability

Perceived risk is a crucial factor in the social dilemmas surrounding the risks and hazards of the environment. This paper reviews behavioral research on perceived risk of the public and experts, giving special attention to nuclear waste risk. Experts and the public frequently have very different views of risk, and three cases are distinguished and explanations for the differences between experts and the public are outlined. Theories and models of perceived risk are then discussed. Most theories have been found to have only low or modest explanatory power with regard to level of perceived risk, and even less when it comes to risk acceptability. It is pointed out that risk perception is probably less cognitive than has previously been believed, and that such factors as attitudes and moral values play a crucial role.

scholarly journals Factors Associated with Perception of Risk and Knowledge of Contracting the Novel COVID-19 among Adults in Bangladesh: Analysis of Online Surveys

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanvir Abir ◽  
Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah ◽  
Uchechukwu Levi Osuagwu ◽  
Dewan Muhammad Nur -A Yazdani ◽  
Abdullah Al Mamun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Public Knowledge ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Online Surveys ◽  
The Public ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Adult Participants ◽  
Target Male ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

COVID-19 is an infectious disease spreading through human touch. This study explored the risk perception and knowledge towards COVID-19 infection among Bangladeshi adult participants. Two self-administered online surveys were administered at two different time points from 26-31 March 2020 (Early lockdown) and 11-16 May 2020 (Late lockdown) through social media on 1005 respondents (322 and 683 participants, respectively) during COVID-19 lockdown period in Bangladesh. Univariate and multiple linear regression models were used to examine factors associated with risk perception and knowledge towards COVID-19. The mean knowledge (8.4 vs. 8.1, P=0.022) and risk perception (11.2 vs. 10.6, P < 0.001) scores differ significantly between early and late lockdown. Compared to the early lockdown period, the scores for perceived risk of contracting COVID-19 decreased significantly while public knowledge about COVID-19 was lower but not statistically significant. Female participants who practiced high quarantine particularly those who did so at the public health order during the lockdown reported increased knowledge towards the spread of COVID-19 and perceived high risk of contracting COVID-19. Education intervention using awareness to increase public knowledge and perception towards COVID-19 in Bangladesh should target male participants who practiced low quarantine and are less worried about the spread of such novel coronavirus even as the physical distancing persists.

scholarly journals The Influence of Knowledge and Education in Public Risk Perception. A Case Study in Calabria (Southern Italy)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Coscarelli ◽  
Loredana Antronico ◽  
Francesco De Pascale ◽  
Francesca Condino
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Southern Italy ◽  
Statistical Interpretation ◽  
The World ◽  
Public Risk ◽  
Population Vulnerability ◽  
Perception Survey

Climate change is increasing the occurrence of disastrous events in the world, but several disparities in population vulnerability are being registered. One of the causes of these variances is different public risk perception also due to the degree of education and knowledge of the population. In this study, some of the results obtained in a risk perception survey are presented. The survey was carried out in an area of Calabria (Southern Italy) hit by geo-hydrological events that have occurred in recent years with damage to roads, tourism facilities and private houses. A statistical interpretation of the results highlights the importance of education and knowledge to risk perception on the part of the population investigated.

Climate Change Communication in Germany

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike S. Schäfer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Political History ◽  
Climate Change Communication ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
The Public ◽  
Change Communication ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Media ◽  
Policy Agendas

Climate change communication has a long history in Germany, where the so-called “climate catastrophe” has received widespread public attention from the 1980s onwards. The article reviews climate change communication and the respective research in the country over the last decades. First, it provides a socio-political history of climate change communication in Germany. It shows how scientists were successful in setting the issue on the public and policy agendas early on, how politicians and the media emphasized the climate change threat, how corporations abstained from interventions into the debate and how skeptical voices, as a result, remained marginalized. Second, the article reviews scholarship on climate change communication in Germany. It shows how research on the issue has expanded since the mid-2000s, highlights major strands and results, as well as open questions and ongoing debates.

Determinants and Measurement of Climate Change Risk Perception, Worry, and Concern

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sander van der Linden
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Risk Perception ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Sensory Level ◽  
Climate Change Risk ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
The World ◽  
Social And Cultural Factors

Individuals, both within and between different countries, vary substantially in the extent to which they view climate change as a risk. What could explain such variation in climate change risk perception around the world? Climate change is relatively unique as a risk in the sense that it is difficult for people to experience directly or even detect on a purely perceptual or sensory level. In fact, research across the social and behavioral sciences has shown that although people might correctly perceive some changes in long-term climate conditions, psychological factors are often much more influential in determining how the public perceives the risk of climate change. Indeed, decades of research has shown that cognitive, affective, social, and cultural factors all greatly influence the public’s perception of risk, and that these factors, in turn, often interact with each other in complex ways. Yet, although a wide variety of cognitive, experiential, socio-cultural and demographic characteristics have all proven to be relevant, are there certain factors that systematically stand out in explaining and predicting climate change risk perception around the world? And even if so, what do we mean, exactly, by the term “risk perception” and to what extent does the way in which risk perception is measured influence the outcome? Last but certainly not least, how important is public concern about climate change in determining people’s level of behavioral engagement and policy-support for the issue?

scholarly journals Modelling public risk evaluation of natural hazards: a conceptual approach

2005 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 357-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Th. Plattner
Keyword(s):  
Natural Hazards ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Risk Evaluation ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Risk Level ◽  
Affecting Factors ◽  
Conceptual Approach ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Risk

Abstract. In recent years, the dealing with natural hazards in Switzerland has shifted away from being hazard-oriented towards a risk-based approach. Decreasing societal acceptance of risk, accompanied by increasing marginal costs of protective measures and decreasing financial resources cause an optimization problem. Therefore, the new focus lies on the mitigation of the hazard's risk in accordance with economical, ecological and social considerations. This modern proceeding requires an approach in which not only technological, engineering or scientific aspects of the definition of the hazard or the computation of the risk are considered, but also the public concerns about the acceptance of these risks. These aspects of a modern risk approach enable a comprehensive assessment of the (risk) situation and, thus, sound risk management decisions. In Switzerland, however, the competent authorities suffer from a lack of decision criteria, as they don't know what risk level the public is willing to accept. Consequently, there exists a need for the authorities to know what the society thinks about risks. A formalized model that allows at least a crude simulation of the public risk evaluation could therefore be a useful tool to support effective and efficient risk mitigation measures. This paper presents a conceptual approach of such an evaluation model using perception affecting factors PAF, evaluation criteria EC and several factors without any immediate relation to the risk itself, but to the evaluating person. Finally, the decision about the acceptance Acc of a certain risk i is made by a comparison of the perceived risk Ri,perc with the acceptable risk Ri,acc.

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