1. The Effect of Culture on Risk Perception, Hazard Mitigation, and Warning Response Ashley Coles University of Arizona

2. Warnings must be… Heard Understood What is happening, time, how to prepare Believed Warning is true, danger is imminent Personalized Risk to self or property is perceived Responded to Mileti, 1995

3. Culture? Hazards research tends to focus on prediction and prevention of events, rather than why people are vulnerable in the first place Cultural factors affect ALL stages of warning response

4. Main cultural factors Trust and blame Science, government Incorporation Extent of social networks Self (and community) efficacy Locus of control – internal vs. external Autonomy Social roles Time view Looking to past, present, or future

5. Mary Douglas: Risk and Blame Isolate Individualist/Market Hierarchy/Bureaucracy Sect/Enclave Incorporation  Autonomy 

6. Individualist/Market Competitive market-style science Conflicting conclusions lead to mistrust of science behind warnings Value private freedom, resent restrictions on behavior Smaller social networks Focus on present High self-efficacy Can be good or bad

7. Hierarchy/Bureaucracy Trust established science, less open to new ideas Trust authority figures More specific social roles Focus on the past Self-central view of decision-making

8. Sect/Enclave Trust only those within group Extensive social networks Equal or fairly equal social roles Focused on future Efficacy depends on how group formed Voluntary – high Involuntary – low

9. Isolates Trust no one No social networks Low self-efficacy Perceive threats, but too fatalistic to take action or precaution …a lost cause?

10. Your ideas? Comments on theory How to test this theory How to make it useful in practice for YOU Especially NWS and emergency managers