The following thesis presents the results of a two year study that addressed lay perceptions of the risks to the water resources of the Lower Fraser Basin, British Columbia. Studies of this nature are important because by clarifying public perceptions, risk communication policies as well as land and water resource use plans that accommodate people's concerns can be developed appropriately. The study was based on a written survey that was administered to 183 lay subjects in four communities within the Lower Fraser Basin. Sixteen experts participated in a portion of the survey. Analysis involved the determination of how people perceive distinct human activities in terms of the risk each may pose to the health of aquatic ecosystems. Further analysis compared these perceptions to those of specialists in the aquatic sciences. The thesis is structured as a collection of three papers that examine different aspects of the study. The First paper provides a review of the overall data set, while the remaining two papers address related subsets of the data. One paper reviews perceptions of activities that cause eutrophication problems and the other reviews perceptions of forest industry activities. The results demonstrated that people tend to view risks to water environments in a multi-faceted fashion. Four factors were found to influence people's general perception of risk and the need for regulation of the activities that were perceived to pose the risk. These factors were termed Ecological Impact, Human Benefit, Controllability and Knowledge. Another significant result was the fact that there were often striking differences between the views of the lay sample and those of the expert sample. Some activities were perceived by the lay sample as posing substantial risk while the experts did not view this to be the case. Alternatively, for some activities, the reverse scenario occurred. Accordingly, there were differences in judgements between the two groups as to the degree of regulation that should be imposed on the respective activities.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Tuberculosis (TB) to be a global emergency (Baral, Karki & Newell, 2007). In KwaZulu-Natal 5704 TB cases were registered in 2009 (KwaZulu-Natal Uthukela Health District report, 2009). According to Mak, Mo, Cheung and Woo (2006) pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) has the longest history compared to other two types of infectious diseases which are HIV/AIDS and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The purpose of this study was to explore student nurses’ risk perceptions of contracting tuberculosis (TB) during their clinical placement in a selected KwaZulu-Natal College of Nursing campus. The researcher used quantitative descriptive exploratory design. A questionnaire with closed and open ended questions was used to collect data from the respondents. Data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 15. One hundred and thirty-two respondents participated in the study, 66 (50%) were first year students and 66 (50%) were second year students. The majority of the respondents were females n= 93 (70, 5%). The findings of the study indicated that student nurses perceived TB as a serious disease and they perceived themselves to be susceptible to contracting the disease during clinical placement. They also displayed good knowledge of preventive measures of risk perceptions, the highest mean score was 3, 79. The Fisher’s exact test was performed to establish a relationship between the variables, and it showed that there was a relationship between age and perceived barriers, p-value was 0,039. In conclusion, the respondents displayed relevant knowledge on TB preventive measures and positive perceptions of contracting TB, which will be the predisposing factors for behavioural change. / Thesis (M.N.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

Small, tight-knit communities, are complex to manage from outside during a disaster. The township of Lyttelton, New Zealand, and the communities of Corsair Bay, Cass Bay, and Rapaki to the east, are especially more so difficult due to the terrain that encloses them, which caused them to be cut-off from Christchurch, the largest city in the South Island, barely 10 km away, after the Mw 7.1 Darfield Earthquake and subsequent Canterbury Earthquake Sequence. Lyttelton has a very strong and deep-rooted community spirit that draws people to want to be a part of Lyttelton life. It is predominantly residential on the slopes, with retail space, service and light industry nestled near the harbour. It has heritage buildings stretching back to the very foundation of Canterbury yet hosts the largest, modern deep-water port for the region. This study contains two surveys: one circulated shortly before the Darfield Earthquake and one circulated in July 2011, after the Christchurch and Sumner Earthquakes. An analytical comparison of the participants’ household preparedness for disaster before the Darfield Earthquake and after the Christchurch and Sumner Earthquakes was performed. A population spatiotemporal distribution map was produced that shows the population in three-hourly increments over a week to inform exposure to vulnerability to natural hazards. The study went on to analyse the responses of the participants in the immediate period following the Chrsitchurch and Sumner Earthquakes, including their homeward and subsequent journeys, and the decision to evacuate or stay in their homes. Possible predictors to a decision to evacuate some or all members of the household were tested. The study also asked participants’ views on the events since September 2010 for analysis.

This thesis is about global catastrophic risks and the conscious effect of such risks at the level of everyday life. Utilising R. D. Laing's concept of "ontological security", this thesis questions the extent to which risks that loom in the global environment cause a sense of ontological insecurity amongst individuals at the local-level. In addressing this question, this thesis responds to the theories of Ulrich Beck and Anthony Giddens who maintain that the contemporary age is marked both by the emergence of global risks that exist as the unintended consequences of modernisation and a greater sense of risk owing to how information about such risks is disseminated by the media. While no objection is made to the argument that the global environment has become more objectively threatening, this thesis questions whether individuals in fact perceive such threat in their daily lives. This argument rests on the view that global risks, in the main, lack a tangible dimension needed to elicit a sense of urgency. Seeking to ground the risk literature from the level of theoretical abstraction to that of lived experience, this thesis presents a case study of how risk is perceived in the tourist-dependent township of Akaroa. Despite the fact that New Zealand is generally seen as "safe" and "secure" and removed from the vicissitudes of global events, its economic reliance on international tourism ensures a susceptibility to external forces that disrupt global tourism flows. Given the recent publicity as to how such risks as climate change and peak oil may undermine international tourism in New Zealand, it is clear that areas that are particularly reliant on the international visitor market, like Akaroa, are significantly exposed to global events. This not only makes Akaroa an ideal case study in which to establish the extent to which global risks undermine ontological security in daily life, it also helps measure how seriously individuals in tourist-dependent areas consider the possibility of a substantial tourist decline.

Nutrition interventions are an effective way to improve the dietary habits and lifestyle choices and reduce the risk of chronic disease. The Researchers in the UK-SRP Community Engagement Core develop nutrition programs for communities affected by environmental pollutants. Risk communication is a discipline that can be used to develop targeted nutrition interventions that will yield positive behavior change. The purpose of this study was to examine knowledge, risk perception, and actions concerning environmental pollutants and nutrition behavior. Data was collected using a modified survey instrument based on the validated Environmental Health Engagement Profile (EHEP). Survey participants from diverse regions of the state included 1) health educators; 2) residents from a nonmetropolitan-non-Appalachian area; 3) a nonmetropolitan-Appalachian area; and 4) a metropolitan area. Results indicated a significant, positive correlation in all four groups between perception of environmental pollutants in a person’s surroundings and the extent of concern that pollutants cause adverse health effects (p < 0.01). Recognizing that participants see a link between environmental pollutants and their health allows nutrition researchers to develop targeted, effective nutrition interventions. This information will be useful in the development of future nutrition programs to improve the health of Superfund communities.

In this thesis the authors have analyzed what risks Swedish business-to-business (B2B) small- and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) perceive when internationalizing to Indonesia, as well as what factors impacting their perception of risk. By distinguishing the risks and the impacting factors, the aim of the research has been to increase the awareness of these risks and provide an understanding of the means necessary for decreasing them. The authors have implemented a qualitative study method with an abductive research approach to gain a deeper insight to the subject. Qualitative interviews have been conducted with three relevant case firms and one council in order to gain a wider perspective. To fulfill the purpose of the study and to gain deeper understanding, the study has been based on two questions: (1) What are the risks Swedish B2B SMEs perceive when internationalizing to Indonesia? And (2) What factors impact the Swedish B2B SMEs' perception of risk in Indonesia? The literature review includes theories and findings of previous research related to international business and how it can be impacted depending of several factors such as risk, distance, commitment, knowledge and relations. The findings of the study show that the most prominent risks perceived are the financial risks of default and insecure payments, corruption and vulnerability to the network. The risk perception is determined by an interrelation between the factors of commitment, knowledge and relations. Furthermore, by examine these underlying factors’ impact on risk perception, the study contributes to a wider understanding necessary for a successful practical business implementation in a foreign country.

Goods that children come in contact with on a daily basis for example toys, electronics, textiles, household items, have attracted an increased attention in recent years because of a common occurrence of residues of potentially hazardous chemical substances. Some municipalities in Stockholm have developed plans for managing chemical risks and work systematically to phase out products containing hazardous substances. This thesis aims to contribute to an improved knowledge base for any future work with non-toxic nursery schools in Haninge. The study's focus is on the challenges encountered by conditions and problems of preschool personnel to manage chemical risks in early childhood environments. Primary data was collected through a qualitative approach based on semi-structured interviews with both the preschool staff and practitioners working in the central organization of the municipality. Identified key scientific studies and theories related to the concepts of risk management, risk perception and risk communication were used to put the results of the study in a larger context. A thematic analysis was then performed using developed indicators of effective risk management related to, for example, risk perception, accountability and internal and external risk communication. The results from this study show that most of the indicators of effective risk management are not met in the current situation. For example, the communication failure and pre-school staff's discretion is limited by budget, procurement contracts and imperfect knowledge while there is no routine monitoring work to follow up requirements associated with procurement. Haninge municipality can improve the pre-school staff conditions including setting higher standards in procurement, focus on communication and information, be clearer in its guidelines on hazardous chemicals in children's everyday lives and develop follow-up work around the requirements.

The goal of this thesis was to reposition individual preparedness within a social environmental context. First, a theoretical model was developed to more accurately represent the social environmental considerations neglected in current preparedness research and policy. A series of three studies tested this model using a mixed-methods approach: First, subjective conceptualizations of preparedness were explored in a qualitative analysis (N = 12). Findings revealed that participants evaluated their readiness not in terms of prescribed activities, but perceptions about their current resourcefulness as well as past local hazards. Participants’ had positive social environments which also reinforced their perceived coping ability in future emergency events. Subsequent thesis studies investigated the role social environment further, using quantitative data. The second study explicitly tested whether perceptions of risk and coping could explain differences in preparedness based on demographic attributes linked to variations in social environment. Data from a survey examining Canadians perceptions regarding terrorism threats (N = 1503) revealed that greater anticipated response was significantly associated with increased age, as well as female gender, higher education levels, and higher income levels. Statistically significant differences in threat appraisals were also reported based on these demographic groupings. However, mediation analyses demonstrated that with the exception of gender, differences in anticipated response could not be explained via risk perceptions or perceived coping efficacy, suggesting that social environment’s role in preparedness is not related to the internal processes often targeted in current campaigns. The third study used a multilevel design to investigate the contextual role of neighbourhood social environment in anticipated emergency response. Results demonstrated that a more deprived social neighbourhood context was related to lowered anticipated emergency response. This relationship was maintained after controlling for significant individual-level factors such as previous experience and sociodemographics, highlighting the importance of neighbourhood social context in facilitating emergency preparedness. Taken together, these findings provide novel evidence that focusing preparedness strategies to primarily target internal processes is misguided, and that future research and policy must position preparedness efforts in the context of existing social environmental resources and barriers in order to build capacity for effective emergency response.

Andelen ungdomar som inte uppfattar några större risker med cannabisbruk har ökat de senaste åren. Ungdomarnas uppfattning av riskerna med cannabisbruk påverkar huruvida de kommer att välja att avstå från eller bruka drogen. Syftet med denna uppsats har varit att se vilka risk- och skyddsfaktorer som påverkar ungdomars riskperception avseende cannabisbruk. Frågeställningarna har varit hur föräldrarna, skolan och vännerna påverkar riskperceptionen. Uppsatsen utgår från en subjektiv syn på riskperception som innebär att inte en faktor ensamt kan förklara om ungdomarna har en låg eller hög riskperception. För att analysera resultatet i uppsatsen har risk- och skyddsfaktorer, som har setts minska eller öka sannolikheten för ett cannabisbruk, använts. Det material som ligger till grund för uppsatsens undersökning är Centralförbundet för alkohol och narkotikas drogvaneundersökning från år 2010. Resultatet har tagits fram med hjälp av logistiska regressionsanalyser vilka visar hur starkt olika faktorer relateras till en låg riskperception även när hänsyn tas till andra faktorer. Flera faktorer kopplade till vännerna och föräldrarna har i resultatet visat sig ha ett statistiskt samband med ungdomarnas riskperception avseende cannabisbruk. Samtidigt fanns inget samband mellan skolan och riskperceptionen när föräldrarna och vänner togs med i beaktande. / The proportion of young people who do not perceive any major risks with cannabis use has increased in recent years. Adolescents' perception of the risks affects whether they will choose to use cannabis or not. The purpose of this essay has been to analyze risk and protective factors that influence young people's risk perception regarding cannabis use. The main questions have been how parents, school and friends affect risk perception. The essay is based on a subjective view of risk perception, which means that not a single factor alone can explain why the adolescent has a low or high risk perception. Risk and protective factors that have been observed to decrease or increase the likelihood of cannabis use have been used to analyze the result. The material that has been used in this essay is a survey conducted by the Centralförbundet för alkohol och narkotika year 2010 among Swedish teenagers. The result has been established by using logistic regression analyzes which shows how strongly different factors are related to a low risk perception even when other factors are taken into account. Several factors linked to friends and parents have proved to have a statistically association with adolescents risk perception regarding cannabis use, this while the school doesn’t.

The objective of this study is to investigate the degree of risk aversion towards investment in the Quebec hog and dairy sectors. The Direct Elicitation of Utility function was employed to determine producers' degree of aversion to risk. The Delphi technique was also introduced as a means of obtaining more refined and realistic information. The highly diverse risk attitudes which vary between extremely concave and extremely convex utility functions indicate, on average, a slightly risk averse behaviour for both farming groups. Dairy producers have 69% risk-averse, 10% close to risk-neutrality and 21% risk-loving individuals for the $100,000 investment game in the EP format. These figures are respectively 69 %, 6 % and 23 % for hog producers. Hog farmers are found more averse to risk than dairy producers, but more significantly at higher levels of investment. Integrated and non-integrated hog producers do not show any conclusive differences with respect to their risk preferences.