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The Diva and Destiny: Can the Voter Be Appeased With Fatalism?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Michel van Eeten  and
Frederic Bouder
Michel van Eeten
Affiliation:
Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management at Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
Frederic Bouder
Affiliation:
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences’ Department of TechnologyandSociety Studies at Maastricht University, The Netherlands
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Abstract

Over recent years there has been a growing concern for the tendency of modern Western public administrators and regulators to overregulate risk – also coined the risk-regulation-reflex (RRR). Too often public decision-makers react to instances of risk with knee-jerk interventions such as increased regulation and inspections. The underlying assumption behind this response is that fatalism, in the sense of accepting risk, is no longer tolerated by citizens and has no place in the current political discourse. This paper challenges that assumption and suggests, on the contrary, that political messages about accepting risk deserve a revival. A balanced perspective can help Western society avoid the pitfall of overreacting to risk.

Type
Research Article
Information
European Journal of Risk Regulation , Volume 3 , Issue 3 , September 2012 , pp. 293 - 303
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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