National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication

The document argues that national risk assessments, while appearing scientifically objective, are inherently political because they rely on institutional biases and expert subjectivity. This political nature can reinforce existing power structures, justify current institutional landscapes, and influence the allocation of resources. The author highlights the challenge posed by new digital media, which reduces state control over risk perception but increases the need for authoritative, accessible information. Using examples from the UK, Netherlands, Ireland, and Norway, the brief outlines how different states categorize risks. It concludes by proposing that Norway merge its four separate risk assessments into a single, transparent, and expertise-based national risk management website to strengthen public awareness while maintaining political neutrality.

• National risk assessments are not purely technical but are political undertakings because they rely on the subjectivity of experts and institutional biases, which can reflect and reinforce the current political order.
• The communication of risks as national-level threats can influence political debates regarding the appropriate scale of risk management (local, national, or international) and the subsequent allocation of political influence and resources.
• Digital media proliferation has created a paradox where state authorities have less control over public risk perception, yet the demand for authoritative, scientific risk assessments as a corrective to social media information has increased.
• Different countries employ varying scopes for risk assessments: the UK includes environmental and health risks like sun storms and pandemic animal diseases; the Netherlands includes raw material scarcity and international power shifts; and Ireland's 'strategic risks' overlap with general state governance, including economic and technological risks.
• Norway currently utilizes four overlapping national risk assessments produced by the Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB), the Police Intelligence Service (PST), the Norwegian National Security Authority (NSM), and the Norwegian Intelligence Service.
• To improve risk communication in Norway, the author proposes merging the four existing assessments into one comprehensive website that includes an early warning function, links to risk management information, and explicit mentions of assessment uncertainty.

APA

Lidén, K. (2017). National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/ba0b1030-bdc7-4f84-b5e9-977cb5c9219d/Liden - National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication PRIO Policy Brief 7-2017.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Lidén, Kristoffer. National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2017. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/ba0b1030-bdc7-4f84-b5e9-977cb5c9219d/Liden - National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication PRIO Policy Brief 7-2017.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Lidén |first1=Kristoffer |title=National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=July 2017 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/ba0b1030-bdc7-4f84-b5e9-977cb5c9219d/Liden - National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication PRIO Policy Brief 7-2017.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{lidn2017national, author = {Lidén, Kristoffer}, title = {{National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2017}, month = jul, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/ba0b1030-bdc7-4f84-b5e9-977cb5c9219d/Liden - National Risk Assessments and the Politics of Public Risk Communication PRIO Policy Brief 7-2017.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }