• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.25-29
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• 2018

Background: The understanding of the relationship between risk perception, knowledge, and protective behaviors could play a major role in occupational risk control and management. Research exploring how workers perceive, recognize, and react to risks in different occupational settings is scarce in Thailand. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship of noise-related risk perceptions and knowledge to the use of hearing protective devices (HPDs) among sawmill workers in Thailand. Methods: Sawmill workers (n = 540) from four factories in Trang, Southern Thailand, participated in a questionnaire interview from December 2015 to January 2016. Descriptive statistics and linear regression models were used to explore the risk factors related to HPD use. Path diagram analysis was demonstrated and used to evaluate associations. Results: Risk perception was significantly correlated with HPD use (p < 0.01), HPD training (p = 0.01), and the number of years of work experience (p = 0.03). Sawmill workers were likely to use HPDs based on their risk perception and HPD training. However, HPD training was inversely correlated with age and the number of years of work experience. Conclusion: The study highlights the importance of risk perceptions and knowledge, and these factors should be emphasized in the design and implementation of any personal safety intervention program for sawmill workers.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.164-171
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• 2018

Background: In recent years, the interest in health and safety in the workplace has increased. Agriculture is one of the human work activities with the highest risk indexes. Studies on risk perception of agricultural workers are often referred to as specific risk factors (especially pesticides), but the risk perception plays an important role in preventing every kind of accident and occupational disease. Methods: The aim of this research is to test a new method for understanding the relation between risk perception among farmers and the main risk factors to which they are exposed. A secondary aim is to investigate the influence of training in risk perception in agriculture. The data collection was realized using a questionnaire designed to investigate the risk perception; the questionnaire was given to a sample of 119 agricultural workers in central Italy. Through the use of the "principal components analysis" it was possible to highlight and verify the latent dimensions underlying the collected data in comparison with scales of attitudes. Results: Results show that the highest percentage of strong negative attitude is among the people who have worked for more years, while farmers who have worked for fewer years have a marked positive attitude. Conclusion: The analysis of the questionnaires through the synthetic index method (Rizzi index) showed that agricultural workers involved, in particular the elderly workers, have a negative attitude towards safety; workers are hostile to safety measures if they have not attended special training courses.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.427-433
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• 2018

Background: The purpose of this study was to identify the influence of workers' perceived workload, accident experiences, supervisors' safety leadership, and an organization's safety climate on the cognitive and emotional risk perception. Methods: Six hundred and twenty employees in a variety of manufacturing organizations were asked to complete to a questionnaire. Among them, a total of 376 employees provided valid data for analysis. To test the hypothesis, correlation analysis and hierarchical regression analysis were used. Statistical analyses were conducted using IBM SPSS program, version 23. Results: The results indicated that workload and accident experiences have a positive influence and safety leadership and safety climate have a negative influence on the cognitive and emotional risk perception. Workload, safety leadership, and the safety climate influence perceived risk more than accident experience, especially for the emotional risk perception. Conclusion: These results indicated that multilevel factors (organization, group, and individual) play a critical role in predicting individual risk perceptions. Based on these results, therefore, to reduce risk perception related with unsafe behaviors and accidents, organizations need to conduct a variety of safety programs that enhance their safety climate beyond simple safety-related education and training. Simultaneously, it needs to seek ways to promote supervisors' safety leadership behaviors (e.g., site visits, feedback, safety communication, etc.). In addition, it is necessary to adjust work speed and amount and allocate task considering employees' skill and ability to reduce the workload for reducing risk perception.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.300-309
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• 2024

Background: Risk perception plays a crucial role in workers' unsafe behaviors. However, little research has explored why workers generate biased risk perceptions, namely underestimating or overestimating the risks of unsafe actions. Cognitive biases in risk perception arise from uncertainties about the dangers of unsafe behaviors. As a typical heuristic strategy, the anchoring effect is critical in decision-making under uncertain conditions. Consequently, this study empirically analyzed the influence of anchoring effects on workers' risk perception. Methods: In 2022, a survey was conducted with 1,418 coal mine workers from Shanxi Province, China. The survey instruments assessed workers' risk perception of unsafe behavior, anchoring effects, need for cognition, and safety knowledge. Multivariable linear regression models were employed to analyze the associations among these variables. Results: The findings verified the proposed anchoring effects. Specifically, experimenter-provided high-risk anchors led workers to overestimate unsafe behavior risks, thus reducing their tendency to engage in such behavior. In contrast, experimenter-provided low-risk anchors and accident-injury experiences (self-generated anchors) decreased workers' risk perception, increasing their propensity to engage in unsafe behavior. Additionally, workers' safety knowledge and need for cognition significantly affected anchoring effects. Conclusion: This research enhances workplace safety studies by applying the anchoring effect from psychology to risk perception research. Suggestions for improving risk perception encompass implementing hazard warnings, fostering safety education, and providing training. Furthermore, managers should give special attention to workers with accident-injury experience and promptly correct their accident fluke mentality, thereby improving overall risk awareness.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.287-292
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to create a cyber-training & education program in response to the needs of skippers and crews operating tug-barges within Korean coastal waters and the rapid changers in this industry. Skippers and crews are inclined to operate tug-barges on the basis of experience rather than information. It is not easy to provide useful information whenever they want or to drill them in safety management skills, because of their passive attitude toward education and the few opportunities that exist. In order to increase educational opportunities, efficiency and motivation, the authors have developed this program which consists of a 'tug bridge resource management module, risk perception training module, accident case module, operating module and navigation module', and are hoping that this program will enhance and strengthen all tug-barge operations. We are also putting all our energies into designing up to date animation programs and developing new scenarios concerning the method of evaluation and certification distribution.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.141-149
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• 2018

The perception of risk that firefighters have is closely related to their performance and emergency preparedness in nuclear power plant accidents. This study investigated the unique risk perception among firefighters working in nuclear power plants (NPPs) using a concept mapping method. Thirty three firefighters in NPPs participated in this study. Two core axes, "fear and control" and "coping resource", emerged in the firefighters' risk perception. In particular, the risk perception consisted of six clusters: fear of radiation exposure and low controllability; anxiety caused by the lack of control and authority; lack of trust and cooperation; lack of authority and professionals; lack of equipment, manual, and information; and lack of knowledge and training. Catastrophic expectation and a low sense of control caused by the lack of responsive resources were the main factors that increase the risk perception. The theoretical and practical contributions of this study were discussed.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.12
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• pp.4617-4627
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• 2023

Public perception of benefit over risk is the de facto factor in planning, construction, operation, halting, or phase-out of a nuclear power plant in any country. Even if there are multiple pathways of perceiving risk/benefit among different stakeholders, the perception of nuclear and non-nuclear groups needs to be individually tracked to help understand sectoral influence. Related studies were basically performed between the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and non-STEM groups. However, there are no such studies between the nuclear and non-nuclear groups. This study investigated the risk-benefit perceptions between the nuclear group (N = 102) and the non-nuclear group (N = 467) using survey data to measure their stake and identify the underlying factors by validating the hypotheses, through descriptive analysis, and structural equation modeling (SEM). Results showed that risk perception is significantly high in the non-nuclear group (as the P-value is > 0.001 to <0.01) while the benefit perception is slightly low in the nuclear group (as the P-value is > 0.01 to <0.05). The non-nuclear group was significantly influenced by risk perception due to a lack of involvement in nuclear activities. Notably, the nuclear group is less interactive in disseminating nuclear energy benefits to the non-nuclear group. Surprisingly, misperceptions and lack of confidence about the benefits of nuclear energy also exist in the nuclear group. The study emphasizes debunking nuclear myths in the nuclear and non-nuclear groups through meaningful interactions and demands effective public awareness-building programs by competent authorities for the growth of the nuclear industry.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.101-106
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• 2017

Based on the previous reports that majority of teachers have negative perceptions on food additives, a teacher training program called 'Let's teach food additives correctly' was developed and applied to improve teachers' unbalanced perception on food additives and let them teach students with sound scientific background. The 15-hours training program consisted of understanding of food safety and food additives, education materials on food additives, development of teaching-learning plan, meeting with professionals from Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), visiting MFDS labs, application to school class, and evaluation. A total of 63 teachers participated in the training through 2 sessions conducted in August 2016. As a result, teachers showed high satisfaction rates (4.2~4.5 in 5.0-Likert scale) and 91.5% answered the training helpful for the school class. Although their initial intention to participate the training was to know the details of negative intake effects of food additives, their such perception was totally changed in addition, they suggested a continuous training for teachers and immediate correction of incorrect information in school textbooks. Also, post-training education for 1,172 students by these teachers appeared to improve the understanding of and the native perceptions on food additives significantly (p < 0.001). Above results showed that the training program could solve the problem of transmitting unbalanced information on food additives to students by training teachers, and such channel could be used to facilitate food-related risk communication.

• International Journal of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.37-46
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• 2021

Recently, social technologies have been created to solve problems from businesses for the establishment of generational solidarity ecosystem in terms of employment, residential space, network and social capital, age, cognitive and environmental aspects. This is senior-friendly healthcare business system aimed at meeting the senior needs for health life to enjoy active consumption culture life even after retirement, becoming a catalyst for minimizing generational conflicts, preventing the cognitive and physical deterioration of seniority in the areas of life healthcare, fitness and well-aging, and expanding into systems necessary for seniority self-reliance. We would like to draw up the development and requirements of the concept of the service platform for the study of collective characteristics for generation solidarity with senior class and the establishment of a customized senior health life system for generation solidarity. This system is characterized by a platform that can prevent the decline of seniors' cognitive and physical functions and enhance emotional stability. It is significant in providing feedback on the risk perception index, fall index, and prevention training index information to the child through the analysis and extraction of the senior health index for risk perception, fall probability, and fall prevention.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.57-75
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• 2024

This study aimed to investigate the current state and educational needs of risk education related to science and technology as perceived by secondary science teachers. A survey was conducted with a total of 366 secondary science teachers. The results are as follows. First, There were more teachers who had not provided education on risks arising from science and technology in terms of risk perception, risk assessment, and risk management than those who had not. Global warming was the most common risk taught by teachers, followed by earthquakes, artificial intelligence, and traffic accidents. Second, teachers recognized that they lacked understanding that the achievement standards of the 2022 revised science curriculum include risks that may occur due to science and technology, but they thought they were prepared to teach. Third, teachers recognized that their understanding of risk perception was higher than that of risk management and risk assessment. Fourth, the experience of teachers in training on risk was very limited, with fewer having training in risk assessment and risk management compared to risk perception. The most common training experienced was in laboratory safety. Fifth, teachers recognized that their capabilities for the 10 goals of risk education were not high. Middle school teachers or teachers majoring in integrated science education evaluated their capabilities relatively highly. Sixth, many teachers thought it was important to address risks in school science education. They prioritized 'information use', 'decision-making skills', and 'influence of mass media', in that order, for importance and called for urgent education in 'action skills', 'information use', and 'influence of risk perception'. Seventh, as a result of deriving the priorities of education needs for each of the 10 goals of risk education, 'action skills', 'influence of risk perception', and 'evaluate risk assessment' were ranked 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, respectively.