The Social Amplification of Risk Framework: A Normative Perspective on Trust?

Public trust is being lamented as the central victim of our new, digital information environment, a notion that is depicted in labeling our society as posttruth or posttrust. Within this article, we aim to call this deficit view of public trust into question and kindle a more positive outlook in future research. For this, we utilize the Social Amplification of Risk Framework to discuss trust as an inherent aspect of social interactions and to question the frameworks' normative approach to public trust and risk perception. Utilizing a literature review of prior studies that investigated trust within the structure of SARF and a case study on the impacts of Fukushima on public trust in nuclear energy, we would like to argue that the current normative trust deficit model should be overcome and future risk research should increasingly focus on the opportunities of the digital informational environment for risk communication.

Automated summary

This article questions the deficit view of public trust and advocates for a more positive outlook in future research. By using the Social Amplification of Risk Framework to discuss trust as a fundamental aspect of social interactions and to challenge normative approaches to public trust and risk perception, the authors argue for overcoming the current trust deficit model and focusing on the opportunities of the digital informational environment for risk communication in future research.