Ethical use of Risk Matrices

I found this an interesting section of a paper which I’ll post soon – talking briefly of the ethics of risk matrices.

They’ve barely touched the surface, but good to see the reference to ethical practice in risk.

Some points are that:

  • Many important factors are necessarily omitted from risk matrices
  • The use of numbers can be misleading, and “could conceivably cause an imprecise risk assessment to be interpreted as more precise than it truly is”
  • And, importantly, “It is crucial that risk matrices not be used as a replacement for critical thinking, but rather as one tool in a toolbox for ethical decision making”

Study posted maybe next week.

Ref: Sutherland, H., Recchia, G., Dryhurst, S., & Freeman, A. L. (2022). How people understand risk matrices, and how matrix design can improve their use: Findings from randomized controlled studies. Risk Analysis42(5), 1023-1041.

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