The Relationship between Risk Communication and Risk Perception in Complex Interactive and Tightly Coupled Organisations: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Past research on the relationship of risk communication and risk perception is predominantly focused on the way civilians deal with risk perceptions and messages about danger. Little research on this domain is done in complex interactive and tightly coupled organisations. Evaluations of recent industrial incidents indicate that the importance of a sound risk communication and its impact on the employees’ risk perception is underestimated. This might indicate a deficiency in the solution-oriented knowledge about the relationship between risk communication and risk perception. This article systematically reviews the existing literature on the relationship between risk communication and risk perception in the domain of organisations with complex interactive and tightly coupled systems since 1990. In order to research the literature rigorously, the so-called ‘CIMO-logic’ (Denyer et al., 2008) is applied. The main finding indicates different leadership capabilities as an important indicator of an intervention’s success. Based on the reviewed literature, directions for future research are indicated.

Keywords: Risk, communication, perception, complex interactive, tightly coupled, CIMO, systematic review