Balancing benefits and risks
Decisions about the use of science and technology are made by:
- ourselves as individuals
- governments
- local authorities
Public regulation can be introduced to reduce The likelihood that a hazard will actually cause harm or damage..
To make a decision, people need to take account of the The positive effect of a product or process. and risks to individuals and groups of people.
Accepting risk
People are more willing to accept a risk if:
- the decision is their choice rather than something that has been imposed on them
- the effects are short term rather than long term
- there are strong benefits to them
Interpretation of risk - Higher
How people think about a risk can be different to the calculated risk. For example, people may perceive (think of) the risk of flying as being much higher than calculations show. Or they may think cycling is less risky than is actually calculated.
In general people tend to over-estimate the risk of things that are unfamiliar, invisible or long term.
Balancing benefit and risk
When making a decision about the introduction of science and technology, the benefits and risks should be considered, as well as who is affected, how and why.
For example, what are the benefits and risks of chlorinating the water supply to a village water pump? The table shows some examples.
| Benefits | Risks | |
| What | Reduction in waterborne disease | Chlorine is toxic to humans |
| Who | All residents of the village who are able to access the pump | All villagers will be using water from the pump |
| How/why | Villagers will no longer need to drink water from the river, which may contain harmful disease-causing microorganisms | If too much chlorine is added to the water, villagers may be exposed to unsafe levels of chlorine |
| What | |
|---|---|
| Benefits | Reduction in waterborne disease |
| Risks | Chlorine is toxic to humans |
| Who | |
|---|---|
| Benefits | All residents of the village who are able to access the pump |
| Risks | All villagers will be using water from the pump |
| How/why | |
|---|---|
| Benefits | Villagers will no longer need to drink water from the river, which may contain harmful disease-causing microorganisms |
| Risks | If too much chlorine is added to the water, villagers may be exposed to unsafe levels of chlorine |
To make the decision on what to do identify some possible actions. Each option will have a different balance of benefit and risk.
Possible action 1: Supply chlorination equipment and chemicals to the village.
Possible action 2: Train some members of the village in the use of the chlorination equipment and chemicals when it is supplied to the village. Carry out regular checks on chlorine levels in the water.
To balance the benefits and risks of each action consider:
- the level of benefit compared with the level of risk
Possible action 1: has a high level of benefit and a high level of risk.
Possible action 2: has a high level of benefit but a lower level of risk.
The number of people who benefit compared with the number of people at risk:
- the preferred balance is to:
- benefit many people and put only a few people at risk
- the least favourable balance is to:
- benefit only a few people and put many people at risk
In this example, the chlorinated water benefits the whole village. It also puts the whole village at risk, so the situation is fairly balanced. This is not always the case.