Actor roles and interaction in the governance of environmental health risk problems: an integrated theoretical framework

Contemporary environmental health risk problems are often characterized as being complex, uncertain and ambiguous. These ubiquitous risk problems may affect differing societal groups. Due to differences in expertise, norms and... [ view full abstract ]

Contemporary environmental health risk problems are often characterized as being complex, uncertain and ambiguous. These ubiquitous risk problems may affect differing societal groups. Due to differences in expertise, norms and values and normative beliefs but also as a result of individual experience and organizational stakes, both the interpretation of the available evidence and preferred policy options may differ among actors. In the process of risk governance, this affects risk framing and can ultimately result in discussion deadlock when this variety of views is not addressed adequately.

To facilitate this process, knowledge on the role of actors and their interactions in the governance of environmental health risk problems will be helpful. This topic can be approached from various scientific disciplines, each applying their own perspective. For example, sociologists may focus on the social construction of risks and the resulting actor interaction dynamics, while psychologists may deal with the individual processing of risk information and the formation of coping strategies. Public policy scholars may focus on the role of actors in policy cycles and the formation of advocacy coalitions, while risk governance experts may provide insights on the participation of actors in relation to a specific risk typology. Yet another perspective is provided by argumentation theorists, who may study the content and validity, reasonableness or persuasiveness of argumentative moves in discussions dealing with risk.

In this presentation, we will provide an integrated theoretical framework aimed at the conceptualization of actor roles and interactions in the risk governance of environmental health risk problems. This framework has an interdisciplinary foundation and tries to integrate insights from different approaches, for example the IRGC Risk Governance Framework, the Social Amplification and Attenuation of Risk Framework and Pragma-dialectical theory of argumentation.