The Course

When we engage in activities—either as individuals, organizations, communities or societies—we are often unsure of the outcomes. Whether it’s businesses launching new products or governments selecting health care policies, we consider the likelihood of events and the consequences of different outcomes. Risk is the study of such problems.

This course is concerned with holistic approaches to the study of risk problems. Risk analysis is dominated by rational, technical methods for providing decision support. Recent developments from psychology, sociology and anthropology, however, have advanced our knowledge of the subject; they have challenged many of the assumptions we once held about the study of risk and provide a rich toolkit from which to draw to develop even more sophisticated techniques of managing risk problems. Specifically we will explore the study of risk from the following perspectives:

• Models for supporting decisions
• Individual risk perception
• The culture of institutions
• The complexity of modern systems
• The bias of institutional arrangements

No specific prerequisite knowledge is assumed. The programme is aimed at university graduates with an interest in understanding the foundations of risk.

"I hadn't done any online learning before and I must admit I had some misgivings, being more used to 'chalk and talk' lectures and seminars and workshops. But I've enjoyed the experience and found it useful, opening up a whole range of new techniques and ideas. If anything, it can be a little addictive to log on..."

David Horner
Project Director
Renew in South Leeds