Sustainability and Social Justice
Document Type
Article
Abstract
The article distinguishes between two types of risks: conventional and systemic risks. Conventional risks can be contained in space and time, follow linear cause–effect relationships and can be addressed with effective and pointed interventions into the cause–effect chain. Systemic risks, however, are characterized by high complexity, transboundary effects, stochastic relationships, nonlinear cause–effect patterns with tipping points, and are often associated with less public attention than they require. The article addresses the reasons why systemic risks seem to be attenuated in public perception. The article goes on to consider how the social amplification of risk framework is useful in the context of systemic risks and describes needed extensions of that framework. It identifies practical tools for assessing the significance of perceptions for systemic risk situations. Finally, it argues that a graphic representation and simulation of evolving systemic risks and potential countermeasures as well as a participatory deliberative approach of inclusive risk governance are suitable governance strategies for preventing, mitigating, or managing systemic risks.
Publication Title
Risk Analysis
Publication Date
7-1-2022
Volume
42
Issue
7
First Page
1455
Last Page
1471
ISSN
0272-4332
DOI
10.1111/risa.13831
Keywords
inclusive risk governance, risk perception, social amplification/attenuation of risk, systemic risks
Repository Citation
Schweizer, Pia Johanna; Goble, Robert; and Renn, Ortwin, "Social Perception of Systemic Risks" (2022). Sustainability and Social Justice. 156.
https://commons.clarku.edu/faculty_idce/156
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
