14-1190b-innovation-managing-risk-evidence

Similarly, a recent report for the Climate Outreach and
Information Network 20 argued for the importance of
identifying the overlap between the values underpinning
centre-right conservatism in the United Kingdom and
those which are congruent with sustainability, such as an
emphasis on community well-being, intergenerational duty
and a representation of the environment not as a ‘service
provider’ but as something that people have a duty to
protect. Social values and discourses also shape how men
and women orient towards science and technology, and are
being explored as explanations for the so-called ‘gender
effect’ in risk perception — the observation that some men
come to see environmental and technological risks as less
threatening than other groups in society, including most
women 21, 22 .
Arguably just as important to thinking about cultural
issues and risk has been the work of Ulrich Beck 23 and
Anthony Giddens 24 in their discussion of ‘Risk Society’.
Risk society theory starts from an analysis of the macrostructural
conditions and consequences of contemporary
(late-modern) industrialized Western society. The claim
is that late-modernity has been accompanied by the
emergence of new classes of all-pervasive and ‘invisible’
risks, experienced only indirectly through expert systems
of knowledge — we may be exposed to risks, but can never
fully comprehend their technological and environmental
causes.
According to Beck and Giddens, the consequences for the
CASE STUDY
MANAGING RISK PERCEPTION OF AUTONOMOUS
TECHNOLOGIES: THE DOCKLANDS LIGHT RAILWAY
Mike Esbester (University of Portsmouth)
96
Introducing autonomous technologies — those
which are not directly controlled by human
operators — poses significant challenges, particularly
regarding people’s perceptions of the dangers to
which they might be exposed. This case study focuses
on London’s Docklands Light Railway (DLR), and
considers how the automatic technology of driverless
trains was presented to the public. It explores how the
risks conceivably posed by the lack of human drivers
were perceived and addressed, and is used to suggest
lessons for the introduction of future autonomous
technologies.
The DLR is an urban mass transit system, proposed
in the early 1980s and opened in 1987. It operates on
a track separated from other transport users — unlike
a tram, for example, it does not run along streets. This
meant that it was possible to run driverless trains
controlled by computer programs, though a single
member of staff travelled on board to operate doors
and check tickets.
Driverless trains brought with them the potential
perception that they were in some way dangerous, as
nobody was in control. However, the records available
show no great public concern about the driverless
technology. There were fears, but they were mitigated
or addressed by those promoting the DLR both before
and during the system’s introduction, until the DLR’s
safety record was established in practice.
Proactive communication was key: explanations of
the system, its technology and the associated failsafes
tried to remove concerns about the lack of
drivers. Exhibitions of trains and promotional literature put
forward both the positives of the DLR and the negatives
of traditional surface level transportation. They noted (but
didn’t stress unduly) the potential for human control if need
arose. Leaflets and newspaper features noted that it was
possible for the member of staff on board to drive the train
and that the system was overseen by humans in the control
centre.
Potential concerns about the safety of driverless
technology were addressed by publicity surrounding
the trials of the DLR, which stressed their extensive
and thorough nature. Significantly, the novelty of the
technology was downplayed. Instead, the DLR’s proponents
acknowledged the debts owed to existing automatic
technologies that the public might be familiar with, in a bid
to demonstrate the tried and tested nature of such systems.
This included the Victoria underground line, which had used
a version of automatic train operation since 1968.
Finally, perceptions of risk were ameliorated by placing
the system under the regulation of the Railway Inspectorate,
the state agency responsible for overseeing safety (including
granting permission to operate new lines). The state,
effectively, acted as guarantor on the safety of the DLR.
These factors suggest a number of aspects to explore
when introducing new autonomous technologies, in order
to address public concerns about potential negative impacts.
The public is likely to be interested in new technologies,
and may well approach them with an open mind and
sophisticated (and varied) perceptions of risks. Therefore
providing information at each stage of the process is likely
to be beneficial. Concerns should be acknowledged and