Details of Research Outputs

In the risk society, the development of technology is not only a measure of modernity but also an important factor causing uncertainties. With the popularity of social media, the new communication technology has greatly changed the landscape of risk communication, making relationship between media use and cognitive risk more complicated. To investigate the potential impacts of the online environment on public reactions to risk, the current study conducted a survey on nuclear radiation risk among social media users living near nuclear power stations. A social-cognitive model of risk information seeking was developed, which demonstrated the significant motivating role of social media information quality on knowledge, risk perception, and information seeking self-efficacy—three direct predictors of information seeking behavior. Findings of this study suggested the online environment’s potential to increase public awareness of risk and promote proactive learning about risk. These findings have practical implications for public-oriented risk communication

在风险社会中,科技的发展不仅是衡量现代性的核心要素,同时也是催生不确定性的重要原因。社交媒体的发展很大程度改变了风险传播的景观,使得风险认知和媒介信息之间的关系更加复杂。本研究采用问卷调查法对临近核电站建设区域社交媒体用户进行调查,旨在探讨社交媒体环境下的信息对受众风险信息搜索行为的影响。本研究采用结构方程模型的分析方法,从社会认知理论出发考察社交媒体环境中信息的质量对受众反应的作用过程。结果显示信息质量可以通过影响用户的风险认知、风险知识水平和自我效能三个变量影响其风险信息搜索行为,从而证明社交媒体所构建的信息环境会显著作用于人们对于风险的认知和行为反应。本研究的发现期待可以为风险传播中的有效公众沟通策略以及线上风险信息管理提供参考。