Interest in information as a function of worry and perceived control in the aftermath of nuclear disaster.
A survey of residents in the vicinity of the Three Mile Island nuclear generating facility four years after the accident examined level of interest in cancer detection and treatment, radiation monitoring, and epidemiology of cancer as a function of degree of ongoing worry, perceived control and demographic variables. Interest in information was found to be related to worry for all three topics, indicating that residents who had higher degrees of worry were more interested in seeking information than avoiding it. Control expectancy was related to interest in information about epidemiological distribution of cancer. Implications for the dissemination of information in the aftermath of a disaster are discussed.
Prince-Embury
S
S
Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University at Harrisburg.
Rooney
J F
JF