Gender, race, and perceived risk: the 'white male' effect

Risks tend to be judged lower by men than by women and by white people than by people of colour. Prior research by Flynn, Slovic and Mertz [Risk Analy sis, 14, pp. 1101-1108] found that these race and gender differences in ris k perception in the United States were primarily due to 30% of the white ma le population who judge risks to be extremely low. The specificity of this finding suggests an explanation in terms of sociopolitical factors rather t han biological factors. The study reported here presents new data from a re cent national survey conducted in the United States. Although white males a gain stood apart with respect to their judgements of risk and their attitud es concerning worldviews, trust, and risk-related stigma, the results showe d that the distinction between white males and others is more complex than originally thought. Further investigation of sociopolitical factors in risk judgements is recommended to clarify gender and racial differences.