Reducing the Risk of Injury from Table Saw Use: The Potential Benefits and Costs of Automatic Protection

The use of table saws in the United States is associated with approximately 28,000 emergency department (ED) visits and 2,000 cases of finger amputation per year. This article provides a quantitative estimate of the economic benefits of automatic protection systems that could be designed into new table saw products. Benefits are defined as reduced health‐care costs, enhanced production at work, and diminished pain and suffering. The present value of the benefits of automatic protection over the life of the table saw are interpreted as the switch‐point cost value, the maximum investment in automatic protection that can be justified by benefit‐cost comparison. Using two alternative methods for monetizing pain and suffering, the study finds switch‐point cost values of $753 and $561 per saw. These point estimates are sensitive to the values of inputs, especially the average cost of injury. The various switch‐point cost values are substantially higher than rough estimates of the incremental cost of automatic protection systems. Uncertainties and future research needs are discussed.     

Assessing Risk Factors in the Organic Control System: Evidence from Inspection Data in Italy

Certification is an essential feature in organic farming, and it is based on inspections to verify compliance with respect to European Council Regulation—EC Reg. No 834/2007. A risk‐based approach to noncompliance that alerts the control bodies to activate planning inspections would contribute to a more efficient and cost‐effective certification system. An analysis of factors that can affect the probability of noncompliance in organic farming has thus been developed. This article examines the application of zero‐inflated count data models to farm‐level panel data from inspection results and sanctions obtained from the Ethical and Environmental Certification Institute, one of the main control bodies in Italy. We tested many a priori hypotheses related to the risk of noncompliance. We find evidence of an important role for past noncompliant behavior in predicting future noncompliance, while farm size and the occurrence of livestock also have roles in an increased probability of noncompliance. We conclude the article proposing that an efficient risk‐based inspection system should be designed, weighting up the known probability of occurrence of a given noncompliance according to the severity of its impact.     

Methods for Whole System Change in Public Organizations and Communities: An Overview of the Issues

In a world that is made up of interconnected systems, public leaders are learning that they must build commitment, alignment, and ownership among a broad group of individuals and groups in order to implement change. An increasing variety of processes and methods are being utilized for engaging an organization or community in whole system change. Large group methodologies, originally developed by organization development practitioners and theorists, are now gaining currency in public organizations and communities. At the same time, community organizers who successfully utilized confrontation and conflict-oriented methods in the civil rights, labor and other movements, are employing broadly participative, collaborative approaches by creating small group settings where citizens can share their views and using large group meetings to engage multiple stakeholders in community change. This special symposium explores and reflects on the rich mix of methods in use for whole system change in public organizations and communities.     

Understanding and Reducing Inconsistency in Seatbelt‐Use Decisions: Findings from a Cardinal Decision Issue Perspective

This article has two aims. The first is to present results that partly explain why some automobile drivers choose to use their seatbelts only part time, thereby exposing themselves to unnecessary risk. The second is to offer and illustrate the “cardinal decision issue perspective”⁽¹⁾ as a tool for guiding research and development efforts that focus on complex real‐life decision behaviors that can entail wide varieties of risk, including but not limited to inconsistent seatbelt use. Each of 24 young male participants drove an instrumented vehicle equipped to record continuously seatbelt use as well as other driving data. After all trips were finished, each participant completed an interview designed to reconstruct how he made randomly selected seatbelt‐use decisions under specified conditions. The interview also examined whether and how drivers established “decision policies” regarding seatbelt use. Such policies were good predictors of inconsistent seatbelt use. Drivers who had previously adopted policies calling for consistent seatbelt use were significantly more likely than others to actually drive belted. Meta‐decisions about seatbelt policy adoption appeared to rest on factors such as whether the driver had ever been asked to consider selecting a policy. Whether a driver made an ad hoc, on‐the‐spot seatbelt‐use decision was associated with a perceived need to make such a decision. Finally, participants with full‐time policies were especially likely to deploy their seatbelts by default, without recognizing the need to decide about belt use on a trip‐by‐trip basis. We end with recommendations for reducing inconsistencies in seatbelt use in actual practice.     

Managing Quality in the E‐Service System: Development and Application of a Process Model

In this paper, we develop a process model for assessing and managing e‐service quality based on the underlying components of the e‐service system and, in turn, address the growing need to look in more detail at the system component level for sources of poor quality. The proposed process model is comprised of a set of entities representing the e‐service system, a network defining the linking between all pairs of entities via transactions and product flows, and a set of outcomes of the processes in terms of quality dimensions. The process model is developed using Unified Modeling Language (UML), a pictorial language for specifying service designs that has achieved widespread acceptance among e‐service designers. Examples of applications of the process model are presented to illustrate how the model can be use to identify operational levers for managing and improving e‐service quality.     

Neighbors in Time: Development and Use of Some Values for Intergenerational Justice from the Jewish and Christian Religious Traditions

The overlapping understandings of Jewish and Christian traditions (the Traditions), both influencing and reincorporating Western culture from the Greeks to the present, underpin many of the ethical constructs of present society, in ways both obvious and subtle. The concept of justice is central to the ethical outlooks of both religious traditions. This article systematically develops values related to justice from within the Traditions and extends them to the question of intergenerational equity as proposed precepts for assessment and action. Many of the results seem familiar because they are deeply embedded in our culture. They are assertions that transcend time-the value of human life; an obligation to support the necessary interests of others, especially the powerless; the concepts of brotherhood, the common good, and stewardship of resources; and the transmission of knowledge, resources, and values through the vehicles of families and communities. Other ideas from within the Traditions, such as giving beyond the requirements of equity and the connection of human life with God whose abilities are unbounded by time, continue to draw people beyond the limits of culture. These outlooks are organized into 17 statements or proposals constitutive of this view of justice. These summary statements are used as the basis for comparing a system of principles proposed by a panel of the National Academy of Public Administration for intergenerational decision making with the views represented by the Traditions. This broaches a broader question of fairness in resource distribution. The article concludes with reference to some developed resources of the Traditions from which further insight can be drawn, and another illustration related to resource allocation. It is hoped that the article helps stimulate wider analysis of the values on which our decisions are made.     

Communicating with the Public About Marauding Terrorist Firearms Attacks: Results from a Survey Experiment on Factors Influencing Intention to “Run,Hide, Tell” in the United Kingdom and Denmark

Effective risk communication is an integral part of responding to terrorism, but until recently, there has been very little pre‐event communication in a European context to provide advice to the public on how to protect themselves during an attack. Following terrorist attacks involving mass shootings in Paris, France, in November 2015, the U.K. National Police Chiefs’ Council released a Stay Safe film and leaflet that advises the public to “run,” “hide,” and “tell” in the event of a firearms or weapons attack. However, other countries, including Denmark, do not provide preparedness information of this kind, in large part because of concern about scaring the public. In this survey experiment, 3,003 U.K. and Danish participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: no information, a leaflet intervention, and a film intervention to examine the impact of “Run, Hide, Tell” advice on perceptions about terrorism, the security services, and intended responses to a hypothetical terrorist firearms attack. Results demonstrate important benefits of pre‐event communication in relation to enhancing trust, encouraging protective health behaviors, and discouraging potentially dangerous actions. However, these findings also suggest that future communications should address perceived response costs and target specific problem behaviors. Cross‐national similarities in response suggest this advice is suitable for adaptation in other countries.     

System Perspectives of Experts and Farmers Regarding the Role of Livelihood Assets in Risk Perception: Results from the Structured Mental Model Approach

Pesticide application is increasing and despite extensive educational programs farmers continue to take high health and environmental risks when applying pesticides.
The structured mental model approach (SMMA) is a new method for risk perception analysis. It embeds farmers' risk perception into their livelihood system in the elaboration of a mental model (MM). Results from its first application are presented here. The study region is Vereda la Hoya (Colombia), an area characterized by subsistence farming, high use of pesticides, and a high incidence of health problems. Our hypothesis was that subsistence farmers were constrained by economic, environmental, and sociocultural factors, which consequently should influence their mental models.
Thirteen experts and 10 farmers were interviewed and their MMs of the extended pesticide system elicited. The interviews were open-ended with the questions structured in three parts: (i) definition and ranking of types of capital with respect to their importance for the sustainability of farmers' livelihood; (ii) understanding the system and its dynamics; and (iii) importance of the agents in the farmers' agent network. Following this structure, each part of the interview was analyzed qualitatively and statistically. Our analyses showed that the mental models of farmers and experts differed significantly from each other.
By applying the SMMA, we were also able to identify reasons for the divergence of experts' and farmers' MMs. Of major importance are the following factors: (i) culture and tradition; (ii) trust in the source of information; and (iii) feedback on knowledge.