What’s the seismic risk perception in Italy?

Risk perception is a fundamental element in the definition and the adoption of preventive counter-measures. In order to develop effective information and risk communication strategies, the perception of risks and the influencing factors should be known. This paper presents preliminary results of a survey on seismic risk perception in Italy. The research design combines a psychometric and a cultural theoretic approach. More than 5,000 on-line tests have been compiled from January 23rd till July 25th, 2013. The data collected show that in Italy seismic risk perception is strongly underestimated; 86 on 100 Italian citizens, living in the most dangerous zone (namely Zone 1), do not have a correct perception of seismic hazard. From these observations we deem that extremely urgent measures are required in Italy to reach an effective way to communicate seismic risk"This study has benefited from funding provided by the Italian Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri - Dipartimento di Protezione Civile (DPC). This paper does not necessarily represent DPC official opinion and policies"