Risk Perception and Occupational Health and Safety: Evaluation in National and Global Context

Risks can be prevalent problems both within national borders and beyond. Examples of recent global infectious diseases such as natural disasters, man-made disasters (such as exposure to radiation), Covid, H1N1, and Ebola viruses can serve as examples of this. Interpretations and subjective judgments about risk are called risk perceptions and are important determinants of health and risk-related decisions (such as policy decisions about nuclear power plants, genetically modified foods, processed meats). We conducted research on studies on perception around the world, trends and what can be studied in the future. In this study, we identified 137 relevant publications from the SCOPUS database between 1987 and 2023. All the data obtained were analyzed using the Bibliometrix computer program based on R-studio. Analyses included the analysis of co-occurrences of networks, thematic maps, and trending topics. According to the findings of the present study, all reports were published in 101 sources since 1987. These documents have an annual growth rate of 5.55, increasing significantly after 2009. The countries with the highest number of publications are Australia, followed by Canada, Italy, Portugal, and the United States. Due to the nature of the topic, the occurrence of joint publications among countries is quite low. Individuals’ awareness of occupational health and safety issues increases their awareness of workplace risks and, therefore, the likelihood of preventing workplace accidents and occupational illnesses.