Factors Impacting Risk Perception under Typhoon Disaster in Macao SAR, China.

Abstract

Studying typhoon risk perception and its influencing factors help reveal potential risk factors from the perspective of the public and provide a basis for decision-making for reducing the risk of typhoon disasters. The purpose of this study is to assess the risk perception and related factors of Macao residents in China. Information was collected from 983 participants using a structured questionnaire with an effective utilization rate of 94.2%. Descriptive statistics, univariate analysis and correlation analysis were used to analyze the data. The results show that, on the one hand, there are significant differences in risk perception on the factors included: (1) age, education and other demographic characteristics; (2) health status, occupation, length of stay, residence area, residence floor, family organization structure and individuals monthly income and other personal or family conditions; (3) channels and quantity of typhoon information acquisition; (4) degree of mastery of relevant risk aversion knowledge. On the other hand, some factors still have a moderate or high level of correlation with risk perception: (1) The older the respondent, the lower the education level, the lower the income, the lower the risk perception of property damage, health impact and life threat. (2) The more children or elderly people in the family, the higher the risk perception of respondents. (3) The more risk knowledge, the lower the risk perception. (4) The more channels for obtaining information, the lower the fear level and the overall impact of risk perception. (5) The stronger the risk perception, the more positive disaster response behaviors would be taken by the public. In addition, the more information acquisition channels and the less risk knowledge respondents have, the greater the risk perception of the overall impact and the fear of the typhoon; the fewer information access channels and less risk knowledge respondents have, the greater the risk perceptions of property damage, health effects and life threats.