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Technical and Democratic Values in Risk Analysis

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  • Daniel J. Fiorino

Abstract

So, we can argue that the lay public are not fools in their attitudes about risk. That nonexperts should show more concern over hazardous waste facilities in their neighborhoods than radon levels in their homes is not a sign of irrationality (because aggregate and individual risks are greater from the radon), but simply a sign that nonexperts are working from a different set of criteria. These criteria are incorporated in what I call the democratic model. The democratic model evaluates risk based on its social and political consequences, such as possible disruption in the social fabric or a loss of communality. Lay criteria for assessing the impact of risk decisions are not explicit, like the those of the risk analyst, but are embedded in cultural values. Similarly, lay evaluations of risk incorporate substantive and procedural democratic values, such as the acceptability of processes for making decisions, the ethics of the distribution of risk, and the capacity to control a source of risk in the community's interests. Finally, the democratic model relates judgments about risks to the competence (Can we trust them?) and the legitimacy (Should we trust them?) of the social institutions that impose and control those risks. The public's judgments about risk are not inferior, but different, and arguably richer than those of the experts.

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  • Daniel J. Fiorino, 1989. "Technical and Democratic Values in Risk Analysis," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 9(3), pages 293-299, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:riskan:v:9:y:1989:i:3:p:293-299
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1539-6924.1989.tb00994.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Roger E. Kasperson, 1986. "Six Propositions on Public Participation and Their Relevance for Risk Communication," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 6(3), pages 275-281, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jennifer Duffield Hamilton, 2003. "Exploring Technical and Cultural Appeals in Strategic Risk Communication: The Fernald Radium Case," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 23(2), pages 291-302, April.
    2. Paul Slovic, 1993. "Perceived Risk, Trust, and Democracy," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 13(6), pages 675-682, December.
    3. Ilyas Baker & Thawatchai Boonchote, 1998. "Sensitizing technical experts to public concerns about industrial hazards using theory, guided imaging and focused group discussion," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 18(1), pages 39-45, March.
    4. Louis H.J. Goossens, 1991. "Risk Prevention and Policy‐Making in Automatic Systems," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 11(2), pages 217-228, June.
    5. Aimee Guglielmo Kinney & Thomas M. Leschine, 2002. "A Procedural Evaluation of an Analytic‐Deliberative Process: The Columbia River Comprehensive Impact Assessment," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 22(1), pages 83-100, February.
    6. Laura N. Rickard, 2021. "Pragmatic and (or) Constitutive? On the Foundations of Contemporary Risk Communication Research," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 41(3), pages 466-479, March.
    7. Jamie K. Wardman, 2008. "The Constitution of Risk Communication in Advanced Liberal Societies," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(6), pages 1619-1637, December.
    8. Ortwin Renn & Birgit Blättel‐Mink & Hans Kastenholz, 1997. "Discursive methods in environmental decision making," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 6(4), pages 218-231, September.
    9. Andreas Klinke & Ortwin Renn, 2002. "A New Approach to Risk Evaluation and Management: Risk‐Based, Precaution‐Based, and Discourse‐Based Strategies," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 22(6), pages 1071-1094, December.
    10. Christina H. Drew & Timothy L. Nyerges & Thomas M. Leschine, 2004. "Promoting Transparency of Long‐Term Environmental Decisions: The Hanford Decision Mapping System Pilot Project," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(6), pages 1641-1664, December.
    11. Konisky, David M., 1999. "Comparative Risk Projects: A Methodology for Cross-Project Analysis of Human Health Risk Rankings," Discussion Papers 10474, Resources for the Future.
    12. William R. Freudenburg & Cynthia‐Lou Coleman & James Gonzales & Catherine Helgeland, 1996. "Media Coverage of Hazard Events: Analyzing the Assumptions," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(1), pages 31-42, February.
    13. Katherine E. Rowan, 1994. "Why Rules for Risk Communication Are Not Enough: A Problem‐Solving Approach to Risk Communication," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 14(3), pages 365-374, June.
    14. Alfred Moore, 2010. "Public Bioethics and Deliberative Democracy," Political Studies, Political Studies Association, vol. 58(4), pages 715-730, October.

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