Contents lists available at ScienceDirect International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijdrr Geo-hydrological risk perception: A case study in Calabria (Southern Italy) Loredana Antronico a, ⁎ , Roberto Coscarelli a , Francesco De Pascale b , Francesco Muto c a Research Institute for Geo-Hydrological Protection, National Research Council, Rende, CS, Italy b Department of Languages and Educational Sciences, University of Calabria, Arcavacata di Rende, CS, Italy c Department of Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Calabria, Arcavacata di Rende, CS, Italy ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Perception Natural risks Awareness Communication Resilience Calabria (Italy) ABSTRACT Risk perception is a cognitive process whose aim is to guide people's behaviour in ordinary activities to reduce the impact of extreme events. In fact, the analysis of risk perception can be considered as a part of risk reduction strategies and adaptation measures. In this paper, the perception of the geo-hydrological risk by the population living or working in a stretch of the Tyrrhenian coast of Calabria (Southern Italy) is analysed. The study area has recently been affected by debris flow events, with damages to private and public facilities, as well as infra- structures. In particular, the study, based on a questionnaire survey, considers: i) general knowledge and per- sonal experience of geo-hydrological phenomena; ii) awareness of risk exposure; iii) information and pre- paredness to geo-hydrological risks of the territory; iv) levels of safety. The results reveal that population consider the anthropic actions as a relevant cause of geo-hydrological phenomena. Moreover, the citizens of the study area, although showing a high civic sense, did not positively assess the actions of the local authorities, both in terms of territory management and people's education and/or information. 1. Introduction and background At a global scale, there is no country that is immune from natural events; in particular, these events become disasters when they have serious impacts on the population both in terms of human and eco- nomic losses and contribute to worsen the quality of life. Great effort has been made by the scientific community to assess the causes and effects of these events on the environment and population, and the authorities have invested considerable financial resources to cope with and/or minimize the negative impacts of extreme physical phenomena. Nevertheless, both population growth and unsustainable economic rise have caused population expansion in areas at high risk. However, this increased risk has not been matched by an increase in risk perception by communities [1,2]. Risk perception can be considered as a cognitive process capable of guiding people's behaviour in ordinary activities with the aim of re- ducing the impact of uncertain events [3]. Pidgeon et al. [4] define risk perception as "people's beliefs, attitudes, judgments and feelings, as well as the broader social or cultural values that people adopt against the risks, and their benefits”. Risk perception cannot be assessed un- iquely and objectively, because it depends on the individual judgment and the specific risk for which it is estimated [5–7]. Many aspects (social, psychological, cultural), often correlated with each other, can influence the perception assessment [8,9]. Two general approaches have been proposed by scientists to investigate risk perception. The first [10–12] derives from a sociological and socio-anthropological point of view. The second approach [13,14], based on a psychometric model, was developed in the areas of psychology and decision-making. Referring only to the European territory, there is a large number of studies on the different aspects of knowledge, perception and pre- paredness to natural hazards and the role of authorities in terms of risk communication and reduction. These surveys, applied at different spatial scales (local, regional and national), are based on questionnaires that use face-to-face surveys or telephone interviews. In fact, the questionnaire is universally recognized as the most suitable tool for collecting, analysing and interpreting social data for specific topics, regardless of the selected delivery mode [15,16]. Wachinger et al. [17], through a systematic review of the European studies published after 2000, analyse the factors that determine the perception of individual risk in relation to natural hazards. Another recent review [18] examines the factors that determine the level of perception of flood risk and the role of individual and public involvement in reducing flood risk in the central and eastern EU States. As for the perception of landslide and flood risk for European citizens, the main findings of recent studies concerned: i) the role of risk perception in catastrophe preparedness and the choice of individual action to face the events [19]; ii) the feeling of safety and trust between residents and structures and in- stitutions responsible for managing geo-hydrological risk, and how http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2017.09.022 Received 9 June 2017; Received in revised form 12 September 2017; Accepted 12 September 2017 ⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: antronico@irpi.cnr.it (L. Antronico), coscarelli@irpi.cnr.it (R. Coscarelli), fr.depascale@gmail.com (F. De Pascale), francesco.muto@unical.it (F. Muto). International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction 25 (2017) 301–311 Available online 14 September 2017 2212-4209/ © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. MARK