Perceptions of risk among households in two Australian coastal communities

Elrick-Barr, Carmen E.; Smith, Timothy F.; Thomsen, Dana C.; Preston, Benjamin L.

doi:10.1111/1745-5871.12106

Title: Perceptions of risk among households in two Australian coastal communities

Journal Article · Mon Apr 20 00:00:00 EDT 2015 · Geographical Research

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1111/1745-5871.12106· OSTI ID:1265516

Elrick-Barr, Carmen E. ^[1]; Smith, Timothy F. ^[1]; Thomsen, Dana C. ^[1]; Preston, Benjamin L. ^[2]

Univ. of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs (Australia)
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

There is limited knowledge of risk perceptions in coastal communities despite their vulnerability to a range of risks including the impacts of climate change. A survey of 400 households in two Australian coastal communities, combined with semi-structured interviews, provides insight into household perceptions of the relative importance of climatic and non-climatic risks and the subsequent risk priorities that may inform household adaptive action. In contrast to previous research, the results demonstrated that geographic location and household characteristics might not affect perceptions of vulnerability to environmental hazards. However, past experience was a significant influence, raising the priority of environmental concerns. Overall, the results highlight the priority concerns of coastal households (from finance, to health and environment) and suggest to increase the profile of climate issues in coastal communities climate change strategies need to better demonstrate links between climate vulnerability and other household concerns. Moreover, promoting generic capacities in isolation from understanding the context in which households construe climate risks is unlikely to yield the changes required to decrease the vulnerability of coastal communities.

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Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1265516

Journal Information:: Geographical Research, Vol. 53, Issue 2; ISSN 1745-5863

Publisher:: WileyCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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