Health and Environmental Risk Communication in Thailand: An Analysis of Agency Staff’ Perspectives on Risk Communication With External Stakeholders

Abstract

Health and environmental agencies are routinely called upon to provide risk-related information to the public-at-large and to more narrowly defi ned audiences, such as children, pregnant women, or labourers. While a large body of guidance is available, it is often general and transferability to new contexts is not well understood. In particular, the relevance of this guidance for South-East Asia is not clear. This paper reports the results of a study, using Q method, that aimed to develop a better understanding of offi cers’ and staff ’s perspectives on health and environmental risk communication within a single regulatory agency in Thailand, the Pollution Control Department. The results demonstrate that there are multiple perspectives, and they are unrelated to roles or experience. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the ways that offi cers and staff within a national agency with important responsibilities for health and environmental risk communication in Thailand think about these responsibilities and how to achieve them.