Faculty Research and Publications

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The global and the local: precautionary behaviors in the realms of crime, health, and home safety
(University of Alberta, 2009) Van Brunschot, Erin Gibbs; Laurendeau, Jason; Keown, Leslie-Anne
Expressions of anxieties are examined in the realms of crime, health and home safety. We consider protective behaviours that individuals undertake in each of these realms as potential outlets for the expression of anxiety; the way in which elements of social context such as age, education and income, and biographical factors including past experiences, perceived control, and anxieties about future events contribute to protective behaviours within each realm is examined. Findings indicate different factors drive precautionary behaviours for men and women, suggesting gender as a lens through which precautionary behaviours are taken up. Global anxiety inconsistently predicts precautionary behaviours — a finding that questions both the utility of and the theoretical significance of global anxiety. Local (individual) negative experiences within these realms play an important role in predicting preventative behaviour, although the impact of negative experiences among the realms and between the sexes is inconsistent. Light is shed on the relationship between global anxieties and local expressions suggesting that behaviour may have a far more local element than might be expected.