Dr. Klinke has published a new article on risk perception
Coastal Connection Podcast: Episode 4
September 8, 2021Coastal Connection Podcast – Episode 5
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Andreas Klinke has co-authored a new article entitled “Risk Perception and Its Impact on Risk Governance” in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Environmental Science (together with O. Renn, P.-J. Schweizer and F. Hoti)
Risk perception is an important component of risk governance, but it cannot and should not determine environmental policies. The reality is that people suffer and even die as a result of false information or perception biases. It is particularly important to be aware of intuitive heuristics and common biases in making inferences from information in a situation where personal or institutional decisions have far-reaching consequences. The gap between risk assessment and risk perception is an important aspect of environmental policy-making. Communicators, risk managers, as well as representatives of the media, stakeholders, and the affected public should be well informed about the results of risk perception and risk response studies. They should be aware of typical patterns of information processing and reasoning when they engage in designing communication programs and risk management measures. At the same time, the potential recipients of information should be cognizant of the major psychological and social mechanisms of perception as a means to avoid painful errors.
To reach this goal of mutual enlightenment, it is crucial to understand the mechanisms and processes of how people perceive risks (with emphasis on environmental risks) and how they behave on the basis of their perceptions. Based on the insights from cognitive psychology, social psychology, micro-sociology, and behavioral studies, one can distill some basic lessons for risk governance that reflect universal characteristics of perception and that can be taken for granted in many different cultures and risk contexts.
