Transcript Trust /Credibility - Michigan State University

Risky Business:
Involving the Public in
Environmental Decision Making
Kirk Riley
Great Lakes & Mid-Atlantic Center
for Hazardous Substance Research
Michigan State University
East Lansing, Michigan
TOSC Program
• Technical Outreach Services for Communities
• Provides assistance at high-profile contaminated
sites
• Builds public capacity for participating in site
cleanup decisions
Tonight’s Topics
• Public involvement in environmental decision
making
• Understanding risk perception
• Communicating with non-expert audiences
• Informing, educating and empowering
• And not panicking
• Practitioners’ perspective--government,
consultant, etc.
Risk Communication
A science-based approach for communicating
effectively in
• High-concern
• Sensitive or
• Controversial situations
What is Risk?
R=HxPxO
Risk equals Hazard x Probability x Outrage
The Essential Ingredient:
Trust
Nothing kills trust like lack of caring
Except LOOKING like you don’t care, which
kills it exactly the same way
The Competence/Empathy Paradox
100
90
Competence
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Empathy
The Essential Ingredient:
Trust
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•
•
•
Trust—without it, no communication happens
Trust—without it, small mistakes get magnified
Trust—without it, all your hard work may be rejected
Trust—without it, knowledge and expertise don’t
matter
• Trust—with it, mistakes may be overlooked or
minimized
• Trust—with it, community acceptance becomes more
likely
Why Involve The Public?
• The public has more power than you (or I) realize
• Public involvement is essential to project success
• It may be required by law!
Steps to Community Involvement
• Understand your community
• Understand human nature
• Communicate!
Understand Your Community: What
are the Hot Issues?
• Technical issues/concerns
• Non-technical issues/concerns
• Community goals, attitudes, history, leadership
Risk Perception
• Public’s views of risk may differ from experts’
views
• Public perception of risk affected by factors
outside of traditional risk analysis
Factors Affecting Public
Perception of Risk
• Voluntary or involuntary risk (smoking vs. air
pollution)
• Immediate effects or delayed effects (benzene
combustion vs. benzene inhalation; smoking)
• Natural or artificial (naturally occurring
carcinogens vs. artificial carcinogens)
• Controlled by individual or controlled by someone
else (driving vs. flying)
Factors Affecting Public
Perception of Risk (cont’d)
• Familiar or unfamiliar (farmer vs. non-farmer
with ag chemicals)
• The “dread’ factor; usually associated with very
complex technologies (e.g., nuclear power)
• Risk provides visible benefits or does not provide
visible benefits (polluter who provides jobs for
community)
The Risk Paradox
• Technical experts focus on hazard and
misperceive (ignore) outrage
• Public focuses on outrage and misperceives
hazard
When To Use Risk Communication
High Concern
High Concern
Low Trust
High Trust
(essential)
(essential)
Low Concern
Low Concern
Low Trust
High Trust
(recommended)
(optional)
When To Use Risk Communication
(cont’d)
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•
•
•
When public input is needed
When the public has the ability to stop a project
When public concern is high
When public trust is low
How Do We Know?
• Surveys
• Case Studies
• Experimental field testing of messages/
messenger characteristics
• Practitioner experience
Three Key Risk
Communication Messages
P=R
Perception = Reality
G=T+K
Goal = Trust + Knowledge
C = C2
Communication =
Credibility x Competence
Four Main Theories In
Risk Communication
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•
•
•
Mental Noise Theory
Risk Perception Theory
Trust Determination Theory
Negative Dominance Theory
Four Main Theories
Mental Noise Theory
People who are upset have difficulty
hearing and processing information
Communication: Processing
Effectiveness
0
20%
100
Mental noise can reduce the ability to process
communication (i.e., understanding) up to
80%
Limited Information Attention/
Retention In High Concern Situations
Reasons For 20% Efficiency
• Denial of issue
• Trauma from issue
• Competing agenda
• Emotional arousal
Implications of Limited Attention/
Retention In High Concern Situations
• Limited number of messages are accepted
• Time limitations on communications
• Message repetition is important
Active Listening Skills
• Paraphrasing
• Feedback
• Control of non-verbals
Non-Verbal Communication
Low Trust and/or High Concern
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•
•
•
Provides up to 50-75% of message content
Noticed Intensely by audience
Interpreted negatively
Overrides verbal communication
Non-Verbal Communication
Body Language Examples
• Eyes
• Hands
• Posture
Four Main Theories
Risk Perception Theory
Perception equals reality
What is perceived as real is real
in its consequences
Perception Of Risk
Weighting Factors
Factor
Weight
Trust………………………..….. 2000
Benefit……………………..….. 1000
Control (Voluntary)…….……. 1000
Fairness (Share)…………….… 500
Four Main Theories
Trust Determination Theory
The goal of risk communication is to earn
trust and gain credibility
Trust and Credibility Factors
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•
•
•
Empathy/Caring
Competence/Expertise
Honesty/Openness
Dedication/Commitment
Trust Determination Factors In
High Concern Situations
Trust Determination Factors
Caring/
Empathy
50%
Honesty/
Competence/
Openness
Expertise
15%
20%
Dedication/
Commitment
15%
Trust Determination Factors In Low
Concern Situations
Trust Determination Factors
All Others
20%
Competence/
Expertise
80%
Trust/Credibility
Credibility Transference
“A lower credibility source takes on the
credibility of the highest credibility
source that agrees with its position on
an issue”
Trust/Credibility
Credibility Reversal
“When a lower credibility source disagrees with a
higher credibility source, the lower credibility
source loses further credibility”
Trust /Credibility
Credibility Reversal (cont’d)
“The only information source that can effectively
attack the credibility of another source is one of
equal or higher credibility.”
Four Main Theories
Negative Dominance Theory
People who are upset tend to think negatively
Negative Communication Boosts
Negative Perception
N = 3P
One negative = three positives
Negatives
Repetition of a negative
A negative repeated (e.g., allegation or accusation),
even when refuted, results in reinforcement and
affirmation of the negative
Negative Words to Avoid
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•
•
•
•
No
Shouldn’t/Don’t/Can’t/Won’t
Never
Nothing
None
Consensus-Building Language
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Positive
Questioning
Conditional
Appreciative
Effective Communication
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Sincere
Clear
Admit constraints & uncertainty
Perceived to be all those things
Wanted
How Do We Build Trust?
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Accept the public as a legitimate partner
Plan carefully and evaluate your efforts
Listen to the public’s specific concerns
Listen again
Be honest, frank and open
Coordinate and collaborate with other credible
sources
How Do We Build Trust?
Commitment
•
•
•
•
•
Promise only what you can do
Be helpful and go the distance
Be accessible
Speak clearly and with compassion
Develop a thick skin
How Do We Build Trust?
Demonstrating Knowledge
• Let people know your experience
• Let people know your background
• Let people know what you don’t know
How Do We Build Trust?
Demonstrating Openness
• Know what people may want from you
• Think about what you can give
• Get agreement internally
How Do We Build Trust?
Demonstrating Empathy
• Put yourself in their surroundings
• Listen and acknowledge what people are feeling
• Express your reactions or feelings
Principles of Risk Communication:
the Old View
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•
•
•
Decide, announce, defend
All we have to do is get the numbers right
All we have to do is tell them the numbers
All we have to do is explain what we mean by the
numbers
Principles of Risk Communication:
the Old View (cont’d)
• All we have to do is show them that they’ve
accepted similar risks in the past
• All we have to do is treat them nice
• All we have to do is make them partners
Risk Communication:
a Revised View
• Citizens want to be partners
• Participants in risk communication need to
represent diverse interests
• Those individuals most at risk may be
underrepresented: those of differing ethnicities,
races, and incomes
• Informal communication methods are as
important as formal methods
Community Involvement Plan
• Know your community
• Know your community leaders
• Define and organize stakeholder groups
• Design communication based on knowledge
of the community
Community Involvement
• What role should the public have?
• How can public participation be best organized
and facilitated?
• What is the best way to communicate with the
public?