PMG Intelligence was commissioned by Ontario’s safety regulator to help the agency understand the Ontario public's perception of risk and how these perceptions affected their attitudes and behaviours.

Our work involved one of the largest quantitative studies ever undertaken of its kind in Ontario – a study involving more than 2,500 study participants and supported by numerous focus groups throughout the province.

The purpose of the study was to use the information collected to establish a baseline measurement of the level of risk people associate with various activities with the intent of changing people’s behaviours.

The results of the study determined, among other things, that:

• Different population segments view risk alternately as danger, uncertainty or challenge, so a single outreach strategy would not be as effective as multiple strategies designed to appeal to different populations.
• The word "risk" is more effective than the word "safety".
• The public expects that certain devices will pose no risk to their personal safety (e.g., ski lifts, escalators, elevators). Most people don't see certain inherently risky things (like fuels) as posing any significant risk to them.
• Increased risk levels do not always inspire people to adopt precautionary behaviours.
• Fewer than one-third of Ontarians were aware of the regulator or its role.

The segmentation data and recommendations were used to help the regulator develop better communication strategies targeted to those most at risk, communicate with the public, and design strategies that enable the identified segmented groups to recognize potentially risky behaviour.

Based on the data we gathered, we recommended specific changes to the operational, communications and metrics strategies used. These changes have produced more meaningful regulations; improved risk awareness communications to different population segments; and better measurements that correlate risk reduction and improved safety with individual behaviours.