Effective Public Risk Communication: Raising Awareness without Causing undue Fear
- Date
- Tuesday 14 April 2026
- Time
- Explanation
- Doors open at 15.45 hrs., talk from 16.00 to 17.00 hrs., followed by drinks.
- Address
-
Wijnhaven
Turfmarkt 99
2511 DP The Hague - Room
- 3.48
How can government institutions communicate effectively to the public about the risk from terrorism, war, pandemics etc. without causing undue fear in the population? Can pre-emptive risk communication mitigate the harm of such threats by building awareness of what to do in a crisis situation and increase preparatory behaviour (e.g. stockpiling necessary supplies; getting vaccinated etc.)? In this talk, we will address these questions building on theoretical and empirical insights from research on risk communication. Building on protection motivation theory, it will argue that effective risk communication hinges on increasing threat appraisal (how bad/likely is the threat) and coping appraisal (how well can I handle it) and lowering response costs (perceived costs of taking up protective behaviours). This argument will be illustrated with empirical findings from research on risk communication in the area of counterterrorism, COVID-19 vaccination and online hate speech.
About the speaker
Lasse Lindekilde is professor at the Department of Political Science, Aarhus University. He holds a PhD from the European University Institute. His research is focused on political mobilization, violent radicalization and the implementation and effects of counter-terrorism policies and communication. His most recent research has focused on online political hostility and aggression, and how bystanders to such hostile behavior react. He has published more than 50 articles and book chapters in this domain. His work is interdisciplinary linking insights from political science, political sociology, criminology and social psychology. Methodologically he has published work building on both field work, survey research and experimental techniques. His research is funded by amongst others the European Commission, the MINERVA-programme and the Danish Research Council. In the fall of 2020, He received an ERC Consolidator Grant for the five-year project “Standing by: Pro-social Bystander Reactions to Online Political Hostility”.