Avoiding the Death Risk of Avoiding a Dread Risk
- 1 June 2005
- journal article
- research article
- Published by SAGE Publications in Psychological Science
- Vol. 16 (6) , 426-428
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0956-7976.2005.01551.x
Abstract
After the airplane attacks of September 11, 2001, in the United States, many Americans drove instead of flying, to avoid the risk of terrorism. As a result, there were extra car accidents in which many people died. This study tested whether a similar effect occurred in Spain after the train bombings of March 11, 2004, in Madrid. Data on train travel, highway traffic, and fatal highway accidents were analyzed for the months immediately following March 11. Results show that, like Americans, Spaniards avoided the dread risk of terror attacks, but unlike Americans, they did not confront the death risk of fatal accidents instead. A sociopolitical interpretation for these findings is offered.Keywords
This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit:
- Dread Risk, September 11, and Fatal Traffic AccidentsPsychological Science, 2004