Nuclear Energy and the Public
Nuclear Energy and the Public

Author: Joop Pligt

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Published: 1992-01-01

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 9780631187325

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On 25-26 April 1986 there was a serious accident at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor deep in the Ukraine. It led to the largest release of radioactivity ever recorded in one technological catastrophe, and public perception of nuclear power was never to be the same again. In this new book Joop van der Pligt presents a mass of compelling evidence succinctly and lucidly, illustrating the use of various social-psychological theories to reveal the public's understanding, and misunderstanding, of issues relating to nuclear energy. Using public opinion research from both Europe and North America, he looks at how people perceive nuclear power and its risks (and at what makes these unacceptable to many people), and also at its perceived costs and benefits. Later chapters deal with public anxieties about the siting of nuclear facilities and about the possible consequences of accidents. Using the accidents at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl as examples, Professor van der Pligt looks at public reactions in the aftermath of serious accidents and at strategies for stress and coping. The final part of the book looks at the role of communication, and suggests that improved communication between the authorities and the public could lead to more acceptable solutions for all involved in the nuclear industry.

Nuclear Power and Public Opinion
Nuclear Power and Public Opinion

Author: OECD Nuclear Energy Agency

Publisher: Nuclear Energy Agency, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ; [Washington, D.C. : OECD Publications and Information Center

Published: 1984

Total Pages: 126

ISBN-13:

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Cross-Cultural Risk Perception
Cross-Cultural Risk Perception

Author: Ortwin Renn

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-03-14

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 1475748914

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Cross-Cultural Risk Perception demonstrates the richness and wealth of theoretical insights and practical information that risk perception studies can offer to policy makers, risk experts, and interested parties. The book begins with an extended introduction summarizing the state of the art in risk perception research and core issues of cross-cultural comparisons. The main body of the book consists of four cross-cultural studies on public attitudes towards risk in different countries, including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Sweden, Bulgaria, Romania, Japan, and China. The last chapter critically discusses the main findings from these studies and proposes a framework for understanding and investigating cross-cultural risk perception. Finally, implications for communication, regulation and management are outlined. The two editors, sociologist Ortwin Renn (Center of Technology Assessment, Germany) and psychologist Bernd Rohrmann (University of Melbourne, Australia), have been engaged in risk research for the last three decades. They both have written extensively on this subject and provided new empirical and theoretical insights into the growing body of international risk perception research.

Public Opinion Factors Regarding Nuclear Power
Public Opinion Factors Regarding Nuclear Power

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 98

ISBN-13:

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This paper is an effort to identify, as comprehensively as possible, public concerns about nuclear power, and to assess, where possible, the relative importance of these concerns as they relate to government regulation of and policy towards nuclear power. It is based on some two dozen in-depth interviews with key communicators representing the nuclear power industry, the environmental community, and government, as well as on the parallel efforts in our research project: (1) review of federal court case law, (2) a selective examination of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) administrative process, and (3) the preceding George Mason University research project in this series. The paper synthesizes our findings about public attitudes towards nuclear power as expressed through federal court case law, NRC administrative law, public opinion surveys, and direct personal interviews. In so doing, we describe the public opinion environment in which the nuclear regulatory process must operate. Our premise is that public opinion ultimately underlies the approaches government agencies take towards regulating nuclear power, and that, to the degree that the nuclear power industry's practices are aligned with public opinion, a more favorable regulatory climate is possible.