Social amplification of risk and environmental collective activism: a case study of Cobalt-60 contamination incident in Taiwan Online publication date: Thu, 21-Feb-2008
by Shu-Fen Kao
International Journal of Global Environmental Issues (IJGENVI), Vol. 8, No. 1/2, 2008
Abstract: This paper employs an integrated framework – social amplification of risk – to study the incident of Cobalt-60 radioactive contamination in residences in Taiwan. Here, local collective actions were briefly resident-driven and the broader movement was subsequently dominated by activists who had never been directly impacted. The author utilises a qualitative case study that draws upon in-depth interviews and analysis of documentary data to investigate the Taiwan case. The endeavour is to examine the interplay of various factors, such as social stigma and trust (mistrust) of the risk management institutions, with the experience of risks and risk-related behaviours, as well as their influence in shaping the emergence of the collective activism in response to the chronic residential radiation contamination. In addition, the analysis examines how individuals, environmental activists and governmental institutions select certain risk information, communicate with others and subsequently shape the public's ongoing interpretation and collective responses towards the event. Findings from this study serve to fill the gaps in the current environmental sociology literature.
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Global Environmental Issues (IJGENVI):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:
Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.
If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com