KEY CHARACTERISTICS INFLUENCING RISK PERCEPTIONS OF UNCONVENTIONAL ENERGY DEVELOPMENT

Payne Faculty Fellow Jessica Smith co-authors a paper assessing the sustainability of energy systems that must include attention to the local social and environmental impacts of such energy production, though these do not always easily align with more regional and global concerns. Social science research demonstrates that public perceptions of the social and environmental risks associated with unconventional oil and gas development (glossed by critics as “fracking”) vary both at an individual and community level. This article provides a comparative analysis of three proposed factors that influence risk perceptions: trust in government institutions, socioeconomic profile, and historical experiences with industry.  December 10, 2019.