Planned Risk Information Avoidance: A Proposed Theoretical Model

Risk information avoidance is widespread, and happens in contexts ranging from the personal to civic spheres. Disciplines from communication to psychology have been exploring the avoidance phenomena for decades, yet we lack a unifying theoretical model to understand it. To develop such a model, we start with the planned risk information-seeking model (PRISM) and explore its tenets, and related research, as they apply to information avoidance. We end with a theoretically sound planned risk information avoidance (PRIA) model and accompanying propositions in three overarching areas: cognitive, affective and socio-cultural. This model shows promise in advancing our collective understanding of the PRIA phenomenon.