Perceived vulnerability to illness threats: The role of disease type, risk factor perception and attributions

This study examined the tendency for people to be unrealistically optimistic about their personal vulnerability to illness threats. Evidence was found for optimistic biases that were especially strong for illness threats perceived to be life-threatening and related to behaviour. In subjects' explanations for their perceptions of risk, it was found that actions as well as physical and physiological attributes were cited in an optimistically skewed manner, decreasing but seldom increasing one's risk. Also subjects' perceptions of risk were significantly and positively related to perceived similarity to persons at risk for the illness threat as well as to greater experience, whether direct or indirect, with the disease in question. Contrary to predictions, subjects' ratings of the controllability of the illness threat were not related to perceived risk.