The effect of risk communication on consumers’ risk perception, risk tolerance and utility of smart and non-smart home appliances

• Published in: Safety science Vol. 174; p. 106464
• Main Authors: Hunte, Joshua L., Neil, Martin, Fenton, Norman E., Osman, Magda, Bechlivanidis, Christos
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2024
• ISSN: 0925-7535; 1879-1042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ssci.2024.106464

•Consumers perceive smart versions of home appliances as riskier, less useful and are less tolerant of their risks when compared to non-smart versions.•Risk communication increase perceived risk, decrease perceived utility and decrease risk tolerance of smart and non-smart home appliances.•Men and women judge the risk the same. This paper advances our understanding of consumers’ risk perception, risk tolerance and utility of novel technologies (e.g., smart functionality) in home appliances and the extent to which consumers’ risk perception changes given risk communication about products from different actors in the network (e.g., government, manufacturer and media). Two experiments with a 2×2×2 design were conducted, each with a different product (microwave and vacuum cleaner) and sample of 400 British consumers. The following three factors were manipulated (between-subjects): product type (smart vs non-smart), risk communication scenario (government vs manufacturer) and media coverage scenario (small vs large). The results of the experiments indicate that consumers perceive the smart versions of home appliances as riskier, are less tolerant of the risks and find them less useful than the non-smart versions. Also, risk communication from the government, manufacturer and media increases perceived risk, decreases perceived utility and decreases risk tolerance of smart and non-smart home appliances. Also, men and women judge risk the same, and there is an inverse relationship between education and perceived risk. Overall, our results highlight that consumers’ risk perception, utility and risk tolerance of home appliances are impacted by the product, product type (smart and non-smart), the risk communication source (government, manufacturer and the media) and demographics (gender and education).