{"title":"Personal relevance moderates the effect of conflicting information on risk perception and behavioral outcomes.","authors":"Xinxia Dong, Janet Z Yang","doi":"10.1111/risa.70047","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Conflicting information that arises from scientific disagreement poses challenges to effective risk communication. This study explores the impact of conflicting information on risk perception and downstream risk-mitigation behavioral intention and policy support. The research context is PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination. We conducted an online experiment featuring a 2 (information type: conflicting vs. consistent) × 2 (personal relevance: high vs. low) between-subjects factorial design with 1232 American adult participants. Results indicated that exposure to conflicting information dampened risk perception, which subsequently reduced risk-mitigation behavioral intention and policy support, but only when participants perceived the risk from PFAS as less personally relevant. These findings underscore the importance of providing consistent information to the public on emerging environmental risks that bear uncertain health impacts.</p>","PeriodicalId":21472,"journal":{"name":"Risk Analysis","volume":" ","pages":"2685-2696"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3000,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Risk Analysis","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1111/risa.70047","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2025/5/5 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"MATHEMATICS, INTERDISCIPLINARY APPLICATIONS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Conflicting information that arises from scientific disagreement poses challenges to effective risk communication. This study explores the impact of conflicting information on risk perception and downstream risk-mitigation behavioral intention and policy support. The research context is PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination. We conducted an online experiment featuring a 2 (information type: conflicting vs. consistent) × 2 (personal relevance: high vs. low) between-subjects factorial design with 1232 American adult participants. Results indicated that exposure to conflicting information dampened risk perception, which subsequently reduced risk-mitigation behavioral intention and policy support, but only when participants perceived the risk from PFAS as less personally relevant. These findings underscore the importance of providing consistent information to the public on emerging environmental risks that bear uncertain health impacts.
期刊介绍：
Published on behalf of the Society for Risk Analysis, Risk Analysis is ranked among the top 10 journals in the ISI Journal Citation Reports under the social sciences, mathematical methods category, and provides a focal point for new developments in the field of risk analysis. This international peer-reviewed journal is committed to publishing critical empirical research and commentaries dealing with risk issues. The topics covered include:
• Human health and safety risks
• Microbial risks
• Engineering
• Mathematical modeling
• Risk characterization
• Risk communication
• Risk management and decision-making
• Risk perception, acceptability, and ethics
• Laws and regulatory policy
• Ecological risks.
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