Definition
Perception of natural hazards and disasters involves intuitive judgments, beliefs, and attitudes adopted by individuals and groups of people about the likelihood of occurrence and course and mechanisms of development of such phenomena. The subjective nature of the understanding of natural hazards influences people’s decisions.
Discussion
Risk perception is influenced by many factors, which are, firstly, related to the nature of the hazard itself, and, secondly, to psychological, social, and cultural components and their mutual interactions. In the case of natural hazards, risk perception analysis has to take into account that they vary immensely from sudden events such as flash floods, avalanches, or earthquakes to long lasting phenomena such as heat waves or droughts. Most comparative studies focus on human-induced dangers, whereas risk perception of natural hazards has been researched less often. It is somehow consistent with the fact, that people are usually much less...
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Dzialek, J. (2013). Perception of Natural Hazards and Disasters. In: Bobrowsky, P.T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Natural Hazards. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4399-4_265
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4399-4_265
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