Insufficiency and capacity: seeking and processing of risk information about PFAS

Abstract According to the risk information seeking and processing (RISP) model, greater information insufficiency leads to more active information seeking and systematic processing, and these relationships are moderated by perceived information gathering capacity. These moderation effects, however, have only been documented in a few studies. We employ an experimental design to examine these relationships. The research context is per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination, an emerging environmental health risk. Based on data collected from 538 U.S. adults, we found that information insufficiency interacted with perceived information gathering capacity to influence systematic processing and information seeking intention. These results suggest that it is important to reduce the entry barrier of risk communication materials related to PFAS by simplifying the language used to explain this topic, as well as to highlight the relevance of PFAS contamination to people’s everyday life.