Insights into Improving Risk and Safety Communication through Environmental Health Literacy

Marti Lindsey, Ben Richmond, Daniel R. Quintanar, Jordan Spradlin and Loren Halili
Additional contact information
Marti Lindsey: Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center, College of Pharmacy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Ben Richmond: Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center, College of Pharmacy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Daniel R. Quintanar: City of Tucson, Water Department, Tucson, AZ 85701, USA
Jordan Spradlin: Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center, College of Pharmacy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Loren Halili: Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center, College of Pharmacy, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 9, 1-23

Abstract: Messages and materials developed to communicate risk to the public are often misunderstood because the public misperceives risk, science information is too complex, leading to audience misunderstandings, and an overarching focus on the details of the problem without supplying solutions or actions to keep the public safe. This article describes the creation of a communication model to improve risk communication that includes safety information. The authors describe essential components of Risk and Safety Communication based on features of Environmental Health Literacy (EHL), which informed the creation of a protocol for developing risk communication messages and materials. An online training module was developed to aid communicators in creating information to enable the public to protect themselves, their family, and their community, leading to improved comprehension of how the environment impacts health. These principles were developed in a series of focus groups, identifying how the public perceives risk, how they prefer to receive communication, and how participants respond to materials developed using the principles. Important topics discussed are understanding the literacy levels of the target audience, applying that understanding to developing messages, how risk perception leads to misperceptions and how to address those misperceptions by using plain language when developing focused messages and materials.

Keywords: risk communication; environmental health literacy; risk perception; focus groups (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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