Risk Perception and Communication

Abstract

Many health risks are the result of deliberate decisions by individuals consciously trying to get the best deal possible for themselves and for those important to them. Some of these choices are private ones, such as whether to wear bicycle helmets and seatbelts, whether to read and follow safety warnings, whether to buy and use condoms, and how to select and cook food. Other choices involve societal issues, such as whether to protest the siting of hazardous waste incinerators and half-way houses, whether to vote for fluoridation and "green" candidates, and whether to support sex education in the schools. In some cases, single choices can have a large effect on health risks (e.g. buying a car with airbags, taking a dangerous job, getting pregnant). In other