Sistema de informação e processo comunicativo na percepção do risco das radiações ionizantes

Abstract

This study deals with the perception of modern technology risks, particularly ionizing radiation risks, as a social phenomenon that, from adoption of new life habits to acceptance or rejection of certain technologies, has vast consequences that extend from individual well-being to politics, economy, culture, and social organization. Theoretical contributions from Social Sciences and Information Sciences were used to understand how knowledge is structured into expert systems and how the role of information has changed in modern society, which is essential to analyzing the phenomenon of perception of technological risks. From these contributions, it became evident how essential the relationship between information and risk perception is, which results from humans biological inability to perceive most of the hazards associated with such technologies, with the perception base shifting from each individuals direct sensorial capacity to the need and ability to build a meaning for the information about the risks. Such information, in turn, originates from extensive networks of expert systems, whose public communication processes are questioned by segments of society that are interested in having them redefined. While looking into the role of information in risk perception, a quantitative approach was used to investigate the structure of perception of ionizing radiation risks among health care professionals and students, as well as how such perception relates to behavioral aspects in regard to information and the very act of receiving information. In analyzing the findings of the investigation into the health care area, it was seen how important information is relative to other component dimensions of the perception of radiation risks, while partial relationships were observed between everyday informational behavior and such perception. Amongst students, note was taken of the causal relationship between information and the perception of radiation risks and the importance of social representations to the building of such perception. The purpose of these investigations was to provide input for designing information systems, understood as a means of communication between the public and the expert systems.