Understanding Risk: Quantification, Perceptions, and Characterization

There is considerable discussion and activity in the fire protection engineering and building regulatory communities related to the use of risk in analysis, design, and regulation. However, understanding risk can be complex, as there are widely varying views as to what risk means, how it can be quantified, how it is perceived, and generally how it can be characterized. This paper presents an overview of key issues that impact the understanding of risk from a variety of perspectives as a resource to better facilitate discussions and agreements in the fire protection engineering and building regulatory communities.