Risk Perception: Reflections on 40 Years of Research

TLDR

Risk perceptions are crucial for influencing people’s behavior, as shown by numerous studies and practical experiences. The review aims to describe and reflect on key research lines shaping risk perceptions and to highlight new research questions. The authors categorize risk perception research into three perspectives—hazard characteristics, perceiver characteristics, and heuristic application—to guide study design. They identify outstanding challenges for researchers and practitioners arising from these distinctions.

Abstract

Abstract Numerous studies and practical experiences with risk have demonstrated the importance of risk perceptions for people's behavior. In this narrative review, we describe and reflect upon some of the lines of research that we feel have been important in helping us understand the factors and processes that shape people's risk perceptions. In our review, we propose that much of the research on risk perceptions to date can be grouped according to three dominant perspectives and, thus, approaches to study design; they are: the characteristics of hazards, the characteristics of risk perceivers, and the application of heuristics to inform risk judgments. In making these distinctions, we also highlight what we see as outstanding challenges for researchers and practitioners. We also highlight a few new research questions that we feel warrant attention.