Science and the Measurement of Risk
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 18939265 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Claire Haggett (0000-0001-5940-8412, University of Edinburgh, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Pages | 1-4 |
| Publication date | 2016-08-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | OTHER |
| Venue | The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology (JOURNAL) |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1002/9781405165518.wbeoss041.pub2 |
| OpenAlex | W4233964946 |
| ISBN | 9781405165518 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 6 |
The measurement of risk is not a straightforward matter. Risk assessments made by scientists often differ from those of the lay public, and can ignore or invalidate their understandings. Sociological work has highlighted that public responses to risk are shaped by inter‐related social, experiential, and perceptual factors and have to be considered as part of the social context from which they arise. Lay people also have their own knowledge and expertise to draw upon when making assessments of the immanency and impact of any risk. It is not necessarily the case therefore that the public are being “irrational” in their decision‐making but that they use a different rationality to that of scientists. These differences can lead to conflicts over risks, and resistance from the public to the measurements, and subsequent recommendations, imposed upon them by scientific research. This entry outlines the way in which scientific measurement of risk is conducted, how this differs from public understanding of risks, and the significance of this disjuncture
Epistemology · Geography · Irrational number · Perception · Political science · Public relations · Rationality · Risk assessment · Risk perception · Sociology · Climate Change Communication and Perception · Computational and Text Analysis Methods · Computer Science · Engineering · Psychology · Risk Perception and Management · Social Psychology
| Highly cited | No |
|---|