互联网使用对公众风险感知的影响机制——基于政府回应视角

The Influence Mechanism of Internet Use on Public Risk Perception From the Perspective of Government Responsiveness

中国正置身于风险社会之中,形成了风险事件频发与公众高风险感知的政府治理困境。当风险社会遇见媒介化社会,政府如何应对互联网的风险放大效应,是网络时代推进我国应急管理能力现代化的关键要义。基于风险的社会放大理论,利用2017年中国社会状况综合调查数据,分析公众互联网使用与风险感知的关系,以及政府信任、政府回应在其中所发挥的中介、调节作用。研究发现:互联网使用对公众风险感知具有显著的正向影响,政府信任在二者之间起部分中介作用;政府回应负向调节互联网使用与政府信任的关系,政府回应力度越大,互联网使用与政府信任的负向关系就越弱,从而降低公众风险感知。研究结论不仅从理论层面揭示了公众风险感知形成的内在机制,还对我国包括新冠肺炎疫情在内的应急管理工作提供了有价值的启示,有助于各级政府加强网络舆情治理,培育政府信任,建设回应型政府,降低公众风险感知,维护社会稳定。

China is in the stage of risk society which causes a series of governance difficulties,such as frequent risk events and the high risk perception of public.Especially when the risk society meets the mediated society,it is a key element to promote the modernization of emergency management capabilities of China in the internet era that how governments deal with the amplification in the risk of internet.Using the theory of the social amplification of risk and the data from Chinese Social Survey in 2017,this paper analyzes the relationship between internet use and public risk perception,as well as the mediating effect of government trust and the moderating effect of government responsiveness.There are three main conclusions of this paper.First,internet use can significantly increase public risk perception.Second,government trust plays a partial mediating role between internet use and public risk perception.Internet use can indirectly improve risk perception by reducing government trust.And government responsiveness shows an apparent negative moderating effect in the negative relationship between internet use and government trust.High government responsiveness can weaken the negative relationship between them and thus reduce public risk perception.This paper not only details the internal mechanism of the formation of public perception of risk,but also provides valuable policy implications for Chinese emergency management.All of those could contribute to strengthen network public opinion governance,cultivate public trust in government,establish responsive government,thereby to eliminate public risk perception and maintain social stability.