Risk perception of complex technology innovations: Perspectives of experts and laymen

In this paper, two stakeholder groups (experts and laymen) are investigated on their view of the risks of the "direct current grid" technology. Differences between both perspectives are identified, and consequences for the risk communication are derived. Perceptions of the risks are reconstructed using two methods: a literature-based analysis and a web mining study. The results show four gaps. (i) Experts possess knowledge about risks that are not perceived by laymen. (ii) Risks perceived by layman differ considerably compared to risks discussed by experts. (iii) Laymen perceive risks as major threat which experts do not estimate as being risky due to insufficient evidences. (iv) Some risks are perceived by both, experts and laymen, but both focus on differing aspects of the risk. The results are used to formulate recommendations for the communication of risks related to direct current grids.