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| Overview |
"Clear, balanced, and lively." -- Steven Pinker, bestselling author of How the Mind Works ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE "RIGHT" RISKS? Do you worry more about radiation from nuclear power or from the sun? Are you more afraid of getting cancer than heart disease? Are you safer talking on your cell phone or using a hands-free device when you drive? Do you think global warming is a serious threat to your health? GET THE FACTS BEHIND YOUR FEARS'AND DISCOVER . . . HOW RISKY IS IT, REALLY? International risk expert David Ropeik takes an in-depth look at our perceptions of risk and explains the hidden factors that make us unnecessarily afraid of relatively small threats and not afraid enough of some really big ones. This read is a comprehensive, accessible, and entertaining mixture of what's been discovered about how and why we fear'too much or too little. It brings into focus the danger of The Perception Gap: when our fears don't match the facts, and we make choices that create additional risks. This book will not decide for you what is really risky and what isn't. That's up to you. HOW RISKY IS IT, REALLY? will tell you how you make those decisions. Understanding how we perceive risk is the first step toward making wiser and healthier choices for ourselves as individuals and for society as a whole. TEST YOUR OWN "RISK RESPONSE" IN DOZENS OF SELF-QUIZZES! |
| About the author |
David Ropeik is an international consultant and widely sought-after public speaker on risk perception and risk communication. Ropeik is an instructor at the Harvard University Extension School's Environmental Management Program and taught risk perception and risk communication at Harvard School of Public Heath (2000-2006). He was a commentator on risk for NPR Morning Edition program and has been a guest host for NPR's 'The Connection.' He has written articles about risk perception for The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, LA Times, and The Boston Globe, and Nova among others. |
| Table of contents |
Introduction Chapter One ' This is Your Brain on Fear: The Neuroscience of The Risk Response Amygdala to the Rescue The Fear Response Continues Built-in Fears Chapter Two ' Bounded Rationality: Reason Alone Can't Keep You Safe < Reasoning by Instinct The Framing Effect Categorization - The Representativeness Effect Loss Aversion Anchoring and Adjustment The Ready Recall/Awareness Effect Innumeracy Optimism Bias Chapter Three ' Fear Factors: Why Some Threats Feel Scarier Than Others Risk Perception Factors Trust Risk versus Benefit Control Choice Natural versus Human-Made Pain and Suffering Uncertainty Catastrophic or Chronic Can It Happen to Me? New or Familiar Risk Risk to Children Personification Chapter Four 'The Wisdom, or The Madness, of The Crowds? A Conversation About Climate Change Cultural Cognition Chicken Little, Polyanna, and Other Social Forces And That's The Way It Is Chapter Five ' Closing The Perception Gap The Risk of Getting Risk 'Wrong', As Individuals The Risk of Getting Risk 'Wrong', As a Society Toward Healthy Individual Choices Toward Healthy Choices as A Society Conclusion End Notes |
