Climate Hazards and Risk Status: Explaining Climate Risk Assessment, Behavior, and Policy Support Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • Based on a national survey conducted two years after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the U.S. Gulf Coast, we investigate the ways in which major "risk conditions," which may subject individuals to climate-related hazards, translate to varying responses to risk: including risk assessment, behavioral modification, and policy support. We present a model that an individual's risk status can be determined by their embeddedness in risk conditions, which include both exposure to risk sources and access to risk information. Our findings suggest that an individual's access to information on climate risks significantly influences their proactive responses to climate hazards, as in, those who have objective knowledge of climate risks and social ties with concerned others are more likely to be proactive toward climate risks. It is also observed that an individual's political views tend to predispose their assessment of climate risks, which further affect their behavioral and policy responses. 2013 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

published proceedings

  • SOCIOLOGICAL SPECTRUM

altmetric score

  • 3

author list (cited authors)

  • Park, H. S., & Vedlitz, A.

citation count

  • 19

complete list of authors

  • Park, Hyung Sam||Vedlitz, Arnold

publication date

  • May 2013