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Protocol for Cryptosporidium Risk Communication for Drinking Water Utilities

EPA Grant Number: U915588
Title: Protocol for Cryptosporidium Risk Communication for Drinking Water Utilities
Investigators: Wu, Felicia
Institution: Carnegie Mellon University
EPA Project Officer: Broadway, Virginia
Project Period: August 1, 1999 through August 1, 2002
Project Amount: $102,000
RFA: STAR Graduate Fellowships (1999)
Research Category: Fellowship - Social Sciences , Economics and Decision Sciences , Academic Fellowships

Description:

Objective:

The objective of this research project is to improve methods by which water utilities communicate the risk of Cryptosporidium to the public, accounting for current levels of knowledge and available options for risk management, so that consumers can make informed decisions regarding their drinking water.

Approach:

This study will employ the mental models strategy to determine lay people's current understanding of Cryptosporidium. An analytical expert model will first be created, linking concepts associated with water contamination, communication, and resulting health effects. Model parameters are based on previous cryptosporidiosis outbreaks. An elicitation protocol will be created, and 48 residents will be interviewed in the Pittsburgh region. Their beliefs will be mapped into the expert model, gaps and misconceptions will be identified, and statistical analyses will be performed relating knowledge, attitudes, and actions to different demographic factors.

Supplemental Keywords:

fellowship, Cryptosporidium, risk communication, mental models, decisionmaking. , Water, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION, Scientific Discipline, RFA, Drinking Water, Social Science, Health Risk Assessment, Environmental Chemistry, drinking water system, drinking water contaminants, public health, exposure and effects, outreach and education, other - risk assessment, cryptosporidium , other - exposure, human health, environmental health education

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The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.

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