Sensible Fear
Finnish reactions to the threat of a nuclear accident in Sosnovyi Bor, Russia
Eränen Liisa
Is nuclear power safe? This is a controversial issue. Sensible fear studies nuclear power as a threat in society. What is the role social interaction in a nuclear threat situation? What kind of social psychological processes take place after a nuclear accident? Nuclear accidents are compared with other disasters, both man-made and natural, as potential traumatic events. Psychological consequences, like traumatic stress, are explained and described at a more general level with special reference to nuclear accidents. In the empirical part of Sensible fear, reactions to a nuclear threat are studied in four Finnish towns after an incident at the Sosnovyi Bor nuclear power plant. What was the effect of ths nuclear accident on these Finnish inhabitants?