Safe Behaviors and Risk Compensation
Ever heard of risk compensation? In skydiving, there is a tenet called Booth’s rule #2: "The safer skydiving gear becomes, the more chances skydivers will take to keep the fatality rate constant.” It’s a little tongue-in-cheek, but it best describes the idea of risk compensation. If people feel more in danger, they will be more cautious. If they feel more protected, they will take more significant risks. It’s not a conscious decision. Skydivers aren’t actively taking steps to keep the fatality rate constant. It’s just a natural tendency to feel less in danger the more we feel “protected” by PPE or other safety measures.
This isn’t just a skydiving phenomenon. There are numerous studies where “safety measures” have been found to contribute to risky behaviors. When Anti-lock Braking Systems (ABS) first became available, several studies found that drivers in cars with ABS systems would drive faster, follow closer, and delay braking than in vehicles without ABS, virtually erasing the benefit of having an ABS in the car. Drivers NOT in the habit of wearing seatbelts are found to drive faster and less carefully when they DO wear a seatbelt. Skiers and bicyclists are found to engage in riskier behaviors when wearing a helmet. People that believe condom use is 100% effective will start sexual activity earlier and/or engage in riskier activities.
In other words, you might think your safety equipment or PPE has it covered, and you are off the hook for being more careful.
Very soon, we will be putting the idea of risk compensation to the test.
We will keep many of the same protective measures as we ease our way back to work and public spaces. Many people will still wear gloves or masks. Businesses will keep the marks on the floor to keep shoppers six feet apart. Plexiglass barriers will remain between cashiers and customers. Hopefully, these measures will not make people think they are off the hook.
Every flu season, we get the same coaching about our behavior. Cover your coughs and sneezes, wash your hands frequently, and stay home if you are sick. These behaviors should have been a habit BEFORE Covid-19 and should continue moving forward. Your mask may make you feel secure and protected to the point where you neglect safe behaviors. But how many people will succumb to risk compensation and think their homemade mask has them covered…in that figurative sense?
Just as ABS in cars shouldn’t make you comfortable with speeding, following too closely, or delaying braking, masks, and gloves shouldn’t make you comfortable with not washing your hands, going out when sick, or not covering your coughs and sneezes.
Don’t negate the benefits of PPE by engaging in risky behavior.