Social Trust and the Management of Risk

Social trust is a crucial issue to many aspects of modern society. Policy makers continually aspire to winning it and corporations frequently run the risk of losing it. The 'trust deficit' raises vital questions and problems to which until recently there have been few answers or solutions. Experts from both sides of the Atlantic explore the importance for trust of various influences, from individual perceptions to organizational systems, and consider the conditions involved in building or undermining trust. Several authors examine practical hazard management issues, including medical vaccination programmes and popular participation in pollution control and waste management as strategies for enhancing social trust. This book provides insightful analysis for researchers and students of environmental and social sciences and is essential reading for those engaged in risk management in both the public and private sectors.

Preface * Introduction * Social Trust and Culture in Risk Management * Risk, Trust and Democratic Theory * Perceived Risk, Trust, and Democracy * The Attribution of Social Trust * Trust Judgements in Complex Hazard Management Systems: The Potential Role of Concepts of the System * Environmental Regulation in the UK: Politics, Institutional Change and Public Trust * Perceived Competence and Motivation in Industry and Government as Factors in Risk Perception * Institutional Trust and Confidence: A Journey into a Conceptual Quagmire * Trust and Publication Participation in Risk Policy Issues * Social Trust, Risk Management, and Culture: Insights from Native America * Who Calls the Shots? Credible Vaccine Risk Communication * Conclusion: Social Trust: Consolidation and Future Advances * References * Index

George Cvetkovich is a social and environmental psychologist who teaches at Western Washington University, USA. He is director of the Western Institute for Social and Organizational Research. Ragnar E Lofstedt is a Professor in Risk Management and the Director of the Centre for Risk Management, Department of Geography, School of Social Science and Public Policy, Kings College London, UK. He is a renowned expert on risk communication and regulation issues and is editor-in-chief of the Journal of Risk Research and on the editorial board of Risk Analysis.