Risk perceptions of natural disasters and terrorist events among Japanese, Argentinean, and North American mental health professionals

This dissertation explored cross-cultural variations in risk perceptions of natural disasters and terrorist events, differences between self and other risk, and the effect of education on risk estimates among mental health professionals. Samples of convenience were obtained during a series of general disaster mental health trainings held in Japan, Argentina, and the United States. After viewing slides of a real life natural disaster (tsunami) and a terrorist attack, participants were asked to estimate lifetime odds of dying for themselves and others. Following the training, participants were shown paired slides of similar hazards and again estimated lifetime odds of dying from the given events.;The results indicated significant differences between cultures, higher estimations of risk across all participants for terrorist events, and a nonsignificant effect for education/training. Participants across all cultures rated risk to self as lower than risk to others. Overall, Japanese participants had the highest risk perceptions for tsunamis and terrorism, followed by Argentinean and North American participants respectively. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are presented.