1. Introduction
Risk perception has occupied a central position in the agendas of many countries over the last several decades. China’s rapid economic growth and urbanization have had a substantial impact on public risk consciousness. Specifically, the occurrence of food safety incidents in China over the past several years has drawn tremendous attention from the public [
1]. 92% of Chinese respondents in a survey believes they expected to soon become a victim of food poisoning and they deem food safety as the second greatest risk in their daily life (after earthquakes) [
2]. Food safety has consistently been perceived by the public as an extremely serious problem in China. A Pew Global Attitudes Project reported that, in 2012, 41% of the respondents considered food safety to be an extremely serious problem in China, compared to only 12% who expressed the same attitude in 2008 [
3]. In the 4th wave of ABSs (The Asian Barometer Survey (ABSs) traces its history back more than thirty years and aims to conduct cross-national survey focused on democratization in East Asia. The Asian Barometer Project Office (
www.asianbarometer.org) is solely responsible for the data distribution.), Chinese residents are asked for their most concerned public issues in their daily life, 13.21% of totally 4068 respondents deem food safety to be the their most concerned issue which is preceded only by issues of economic growth and Primary and secondary education (18.49 and 18.69%, respectively, see
Table 1). All the evidence above indicates that the Chinese public perceive lots of anxiety and risk about food safety.
Social scientists and psychologists believe that perceptions of food safety interconnects information communication [
4]. The public can access food safety information through a multitude of information sources, such as radio broadcasts, TV reports, newspapers and magazines [
5]. The trust in information sources and preference for specific information sources may be key determinants of the public’s perception of risk regarding food safety [
6]. Hence, understanding the relationships between the risk perceptions of food safety and the public’s preference for information sources could elicit public approval of governments’ food safety related programs, while optimizing more effective food safety policies [
7]. Information source preference should be considered when analyzing the underlying influencing factors of the perceptions of food safety and further actions.
However, research specifically focusing on food safety information sources is limited [
7,
8,
9,
10]. This article employs data from a recent representative national survey conducted in 2015 and focuses on communications via various information sources regarding the public perception of food safety risks in China. In addition, we explore the relationship between fundamental demographic characteristics, risk perception and information sources. Meanwhile, incoming states have influence on the behavior and knowledge of residents regarding food consumption [
8]. For example, it is found that residents whose family income is less than 1000 US dollars per month are less likely to use cutting boards in preparing meals [
9]. As result, the group of family has higher probability to fall in foodborne disease, which may be directly linked with their perception of food safety. An existing study by Chen et al. [
10] focuses on a cross-sectional questionnaire survey to workers in three dairy processing plants. The finding demonstrates that workers has low-level knowledge of food safety also presents low satisfactory attitudes about food safety. Thus, we include household economic state as our key control variable in our analysis. The contribution of this study is to provide some understanding of the most reliable paths for communicating food safety information in various social contexts. The conclusion may inspire and guide policymakers as they plan and implement adequate risk communication strategies for food safety policy.
This study’s analysis addresses two major factors. First, perceptions of food safety risk among the general public according to four demographic factors, that is, age, gender, marital status and social identity, are identified with regard to differences in perceptions of risk based on these demographic factors. Second, four types of information sources are combined with the four demographic factors to examine the potential effect of information access on the perception of food safety risk. Finally, underlying explanations are presented and policy insights and recommendations are suggested based on the empirical analysis.
2. Theory and Hypotheses
Risk is defined as the set of all destructive consequences that an individual believes possible. As such, risk perception includes all thoughts, beliefs and constructs regarding the characteristics and severity of a risk [
11]. In terms of the social construct of risk, the role of information exerts a significant capacity to shape perceptions about risk without direct experience [
6]. The level of dependence various populations has on the various sources of information engaged in risk communication. In recent decades, the public’s perception of risk has been examined through psychological experiments and public surveys [
4]. Social scientists and psychologists have conducted research into how information impacts and determines perceived risks with respect to food. Information about risks, such as what is reported, how is it reported, to whom and by whom is it reported, is a crucial factor in risk decisions. In this sense, information communication is becoming an essential measure of shaping public’s risk perception and the process of exchanging and sharing information about risk is a purposeful activity. Sharing information about specific risks may enhance interest in given issues, improve public knowledge, change attitudes and behaviors and influence decision-making [
12]. In general, information communication can strengthen people’s risk awareness and influence their decisions [
13]. In turn, the understanding of the public’s perception of risk improves risk information communication strategies [
4]. The sources of information include experts and authorities; traditional media such as radio, television, newspapers and magazines; social media such as the Internet, public agencies and political pressure groups; and informal networks of friends and family. Differences in the structure of the media in various countries may also have important implications for food risk perceptions [
14,
15].
In China, the government is perceived as the most reliable source of information [
10]. Traditional media such as radio, television and newspapers are the most common information sources for individuals seeking risk information [
16,
17]. Among these sources, television and radio are the primary sources of information regarding food safety [
18,
19,
20]. According to a report from CMMR (China Mainland Marketing Research Company), 97% of residents have access to TV and all television and radio stations are owned by the government for propaganda purposes [
21]. As the basic tools of national propaganda, these forms of TV and Radio tend to be more extensive and more positive in their coverage, which can be regarded as self-serving [
14]. Magazines and newspaper are the second most preferred media sources. The emergence of media commercialization allows the Chinese media to be more effective in disseminating information and guiding public opinion [
22]. Profit-oriented media inevitably offers more negative stories including food safety issues [
14]. Since negative information is more attractive than positive [
18], the public sometimes prefers to seek reliable information provided by commercial media rather than accessing official media sources [
21].
In recent years, the Internet is becoming one of the more common informal ways to reach the population. According to a report from the CMMR (China Mainland Marketing Research Company), approximately 73.2% of the residents in China have access to the Internet. Particularly, when the traditional mass media cannot provide enough information, the public in China is more dependent on the Internet [
23]. Additionally, social media also become an effective channel for food safety communication in China [
24]. For example, microblogs, which can develop quickly into independent communications platforms have a positive influence on the public’s cognitive learning about food safety information as they are able to bypass censoring of the Chinese government [
18,
25]. In other Asian countries like Vietnam, people who are female, highly influenced by online relationships and experience difficulty in performing usual activities are more likely to use the Internet to search for information related to food safety [
26]. We identify similar observations in our national survey. In particular, female and well-educated (i.e., college-level education or equivalent) respondents and people who prefer online shopping take more time to search for and read information regarding food safety. Meanwhile, the public’s perception of risk is also influenced by other people. Interpersonal exchanges through social networks amplify and attenuate the public’s perception of risk [
27]. Particularly, in the absence of access to formal information or when lacking the ability to process complex information, the public may seek one-to-one interactions. Personal contacts and interpersonal trust in China also play important roles in shaping people’s perceptions with respect to risk [
28].
The credibility of the information source is an important factor in effective risk communication [
29]. Depending on the various levels of credibility regarding the different information sources, we posit that four patterns of information sources have varying effects on individuals’ perceptions regarding food safety risk. First, in consideration of the censoring of news for ideological propaganda in China, the traditional media, including newspapers, magazines, radio and television, is controlled strictly by the government. Thus, the traditional media is more inclined to deliver positive content as it does not support negative content. Second, online media and social media sources, such as the Internet as well as micro-blogs, interpersonal communications and WeChat are relatively free and more flexible in the diffusion of information about safety incidents. Among them, furthermore, the form of media may be more influential than interpersonal communications with respect to risk perceptions and decision-making [
30]. Competition from the commercial media and the Web-based media has created a credibility gap problem for the official media [
21] as the government often has less public trust than unofficial sources [
16]. The public gives more weight to negative information than positive information [
14]. Hence, the public, by means of online information sources, is more likely to be affected by media reports about negative information regarding food risk. Thus, we propose the following hypotheses:
Hypothesis 1 (H1). The various channels of information differently influence people’s perceived food safety risk in China.
Hypothesis 1A (H1A). With respect to traditional media, people who depend on television and radio are likely to express a lower degree of risk with respect to food safety than do people whose media sources include magazines and newspapers.
Hypothesis 1B (H1B). People who depend on traditional media for their information are likely to express a lower degree of risk with respect to food safety than those who use social media as their source of information.
Hypothesis 1C (H1C). People who depend on interpersonal exchange are likely to have a lower degree of risk perception about food safety than those who rely on traditional media and social media.
In addition to the acceptability of information sources, previous research has found that people’s perceptions of food safety risk vary depending on certain sociodemographic characteristics. Gender, age, education, income, home ownership and geographical region are among the most important characteristics [
31,
32]. Accordingly, several studies have examined and noted gender differences in risk perception. First, females are usually primary meal planners and caregivers of babies and young children in family in China. Moreover, females are more thoughtful and sensitive in nature. Therefore, women, more so than men, are more vigilant about food safety and tend to express greater concern about the risks associated with technology, the environment and health. Second, older people normally has more experience and knowledge on food-borne diseases. Besides, people pay more attention to health when they are getting old and health problems (e.g., gastritis, digestive disease, cancer etc.) are more likely to arouse their distrust of food safety. Thus, people’s perception of food safety is likely to vary in different life stages. In some previous studies, age is generally found to be positively correlated with risk perception, with older people perceiving greater risk than younger people. Third, educational attainment is an important predictor of public risk perception worldwide. Comparing with the people with less education background, well-educated people usually has more knowledge regarding food induced disease and relatively scientific handing process of food [
33]. Therefore, we believe that those with high education have more awareness of food safety risks and tends to exhibit higher levels of risk perception. Actually, income is often taken as an important control variable in empirical studies. In general, income is negatively correlated with risk perception [
34]. The high-income group is reasonably more concerned about life quality related issues including food safety and have higher expectations for the safety of food in their daily lives [
31]. Thus, we think the low-income people are more apathetic and numb to food safety. Fourth, those with babies and underage children also express higher levels of risk associated with than those who with no children at home. This assumption is straightforward and explainable. Infants and children are more vulnerable to food contaminations, as well as they are less trained and prepared in identifying food risk and food contamination. Additionally, one child policy had been implemented nationally from the early 1980s, most of Chinese family have only one child, Chinese parents are more likely to feel threatened of food safety. Similarly, individuals with marriage or domestic partnership experience express higher levels of food safety risk, since they have experience in preparing meals and are generally becoming more responsible to their lovers. Finally, location, that is, urban versus rural, is likely to influence individuals’ perceptions and concerns about food safety risks. Rural residents put less emphasis on quality but price in food consumption since the family income is normally much lower than that of urban residents. Therefore, urban residents tend to be more concerned about the quality of food than rural citizens because purchasing decisions in rural areas may often be contingent on price consideration [
35]. While food safety issue has obtained much attention in contemporary China, systematic examinations of public risk perception of food risk based on national samples are limited. Therefore, this study aims to explore the linkages between perception of food safety and its affecting factors. Socio-demographic characteristics serve mainly as control variables in this study to assess the net influence of cognitive, experiential and socio-cultural factors on risk perception. Based on the review of previous research, we formulate the following hypotheses.
Hypothesis 2A (H2A). All else being equal, females and the elderly are expected to perceive higher levels of risk associated with food safety, while residents living in rural areas are expected to perceive lower levels of risk associated with food safety.
Hypothesis 2B (H2B). Individuals with babies or children and those who are married or have domestic partnership experience tend to perceive greater risk with respect to food safety.
Hypothesis 2C (H2C). Individuals with higher incomes and higher levels of education perceive greater risk with respect to food safety.
4. Discussion and Implications for Future Practice
During the past few decades, the discrepancy between increasing food safety consciousness and the high frequency of food safety incidents has become quite clear. Accordingly, we examine the influence of different information sources on residents’ perceptions of food safety. Consistent with previous studies, we incorporate demographic variables in our model as control variables and analyze their influences by testing three hypotheses.
4.1. Demography Characteristics and the Perception of Food Safety Risk
Consistent with previous studies, we provide certain demographic variables in our model as control variables and propose three hypotheses: H2A, H2B and H2C. However, none of these three hypotheses are fully supported by our analytical results. We find that young, urban and highly educated residents perceive higher levels of food safety risk, while income, gender and having children in the home exert no significant influence on perceptions of food safety risk. These findings are explainable and offer valuable information for government policymakers.
Consistent with several existing studies, age is empirically proven to be positively correlated with perceptions of food safety in this study. Elderly people are generally far more inclined to exhibit low levels of concern regarding food safety than are younger people. One possible explanation is that as people age, they become more patient and tolerant. Furthermore, their personal experiences with food indicate that food safety is far better than it was years ago and is thus less likely to be a threat to their health. Because younger residents are more highly educated and prefer to use modern media in contemporary China, they have more opportunities to learn about food safety scandals and they recognize the drawbacks of the food safety maintenance system, which contributes to their pessimistic perceptions of food safety. In fact, highly educated individuals are empirically found to perceive more risks associated with food safety in both M3 and M4. This observation highlights the direct influence of education on the public’s attitude, with individuals with less education perceiving fewer risks. Thus, education interventions should be offered to improve knowledge and attitudes toward food safety, particularly for less educated individuals [
36].
It is interesting that gender is not found to be an influential factor in the perception of food safety in our empirical study, which is contrary to our initial hypothesis. Some surveys reveal that gender does affect concerns about food scandals and that females are more likely than males to perceive higher levels of food safety risk associated with bacterial contamination, additives and pesticide residues. Our empirical results could be a result of the division of labor in Chinese society and in Chinese families. In China, most females are fully employed and both males and females share equally in family duties (e.g., food preparation and cooking, child care, house cleaning, etc.) in the home and at work (e.g., similar workplaces, career tracks and occupations in employment). Thus, similar working and living conditions and experiences between males and females lead to the same levels of vigilance about food safety. In this study, we also find that family income does not significantly influence people’s perceptions with respect to food safety risk. Safety, including food safety, is a universal life requirement of each human being, which explains the non-significant difference among groups with hierarchical family economic statuses.
We examine the influence of family structure on people’s perceptions of food safety risk by introducing two control variables, cohabiting experience and the presence of children in the home. The empirical models M3 and M4 suggest that residents’ habitation experience significantly affects their perception of food safety risk and that the presence of children in the family is highly relevant. This observation is both interesting and understandable. In this study, the residents who cohabit with their significant others begin to adopt marital-type relations and behaviors; thus, they assume new roles and responsibilities in their new family structure compared to the roles that they had when living with their parents or when living as single. In Chinese marital relations, either the husband or both parties make the principal family decisions, including expenditures, investments and insurance plans. Since many food safety scandals have occurred in China in recent years, health and food safety issues have become an important topic in society and a serious concern for families. For example, a newborn child may increase a family’s concern regarding food safety issues but the effectiveness of that concern is not statistically significant. This social characteristic explains the significant influence of cohabiting experiences on residents’ perceptions of food safety risk.
4.2. Information Sources and Perceptions of Food Safety Risk
In addition to the demographic variables, the information medium may affect residents’ food safety concerns. We find different perceptions of food risk among groups who rely on various media sources. The results of the quantitative analysis, which are presented in
Table 2, support H1B and H1C but do not support H1A. Specifically, we find that those who rely primarily on magazines and newspapers are not significantly different from those who rely on TV. However, people who depend on interpersonal information exchange (i.e., face-to-face communications) perceive less risk with respect to food safety. This finding may result from China’s media regulation policies and the inherent nature of the media in China.
First, TV and radio stations are owned and operated by governments in China and are therefore inclined to deliver positive rather than negative information. However, modern media sources, such as the Internet and Weibo messaging, are commercially owned and more flexible with respect to information sharing and social interactions. Accordingly, information content differs based on the medium sharing the information, with modern media delivering more diversified and negative information.
Second, news spreads faster over modern media, such as the Internet, than it does using traditional media. For example, WeChat is a popular online social media site with more than 980 million users, 61% of whom check information on WeChat more than ten times a day and 55.1% of whom have more than 100 connected friends. Furthermore, information can be shared by a single click on a displayed page. People disseminate more negative than positive information and they tend to disseminate negative information to more recipients over a longer period of time. Thus, a piece of information shared by one person using modern media can be spread rapidly in a short time to an infinitely large number of people.
However, because modern media are less regulated, more negative information and rumors are transmitted. Bad news spreads more quickly and more widely due to the psychology of the users of modern media as well as its natural characteristics. In this sense, it is understandable that residents who rely on modern media sources receive more negative information and hence perceive a higher level of food safety risk. Among the modern media in contemporary China, text, Weibo, blogs and WeChat services request that members provide individual personal information, whereas posts and comment services on the Internet are typically anonymous. It is reasonable to assume that more negative information, as well as vicious comments and rumors, are transmitted over the Internet. As a result, residents who rely on the Internet for information perceive greater risk than do those who rely on text, Weibo, blogs or WeChat.
Finally, people who depend on interpersonal information exchanged through face-to-face encounters experience the lowest degree of risk perception regarding food safety among traditional media and modern media in our empirical study, which may be due to two separate factors. First, most (approximately 83% in our survey) residents who depend primarily on interpersonal information exchanged through face-to-face encounters are either elderly or living in rural areas and have less education. As shown in this study, rural and elderly residents are more likely to perceive fewer food safety risks.
In summary, this study examines the influence of information sharing media on residents’ risk perceptions of food safety in the context of China by introducing residents’ demographic characteristics as control factors. We find that residents who rely on social media perceive a higher level of food safety risk than do those who rely on traditional media. Relying on interpersonal information exchanges leads to the lowest level of risk perception regarding food safety. The empirical findings from the analysis of the national survey data reveal some patterns in respondents’ perceptions of food safety that are potentially helpful in conceiving governmental policies.
4.3. Limitations and Future Studies
The limitations of this study are at least twofold. First, we have omitted some variables. Perceived risk of food safety depends not only on different sources but source credibility, content of the message, as well as the amount and quantity of information. It is worth including more variables to explain food safety perceptions from different dimensions. Moreover, psychometric paradigms argue that perceived benefit, trust, negative image and knowledge influence the perceived risk of food. In our future research, we will pay special attention to the variables and endeavor to provide more explanations of residents’ food safety perceptions. Second, exploring influence factors such as information sources in this study is important and contributive but it is also valuable to examine how the public’s perception of food safety affects their behaviors. For example, food safety perception is likely to affect the public’s attitude to government, political participation and social trust, the empirical studies to examine their relations are therefore worthwhile. Thus, investigating the impact of the perception of food safety offers a fertile avenue for future research.