Terrorism Risk Perceptions and Proximity to Primary Terrorist Targets: How Close is Too Close?

A survey of Michigan residents (N = 1,003) conducted in 2005 found a positive relationship between people’s closeness to a “primary” terrorist target and their judgments of the likelihood of a terrorist attack in their home communities in the next 12 months. This relationship was especially strong among female respondents and people with lower household incomes. Similarities and differences between this study and a previous study conducted by Fischhoff et al. (2003) immediately following the 9/11 terrorist events are discussed. Empirical results suggest that public perceptions of terrorism risk are being shaped more by the environment in which people reside than by other common predictors of risk perception.