Public Understanding of Regimes of Risk and Regulation

This project asks how consumers are now represented within the new culture of regulation and, on the other hand, how consumers themselves understand their changing role within communications and financial service regulation

Project Overview

Developments in the economic landscape, together with technological advances, globalisation and a range of other societal changes all shape contemporary approaches to the management of risk in an ever-shrinking world. One outcome is a shift from state regulation to various forms of self- and co-regulation, with new regulatory bodies being established, and increasing expectations on the public to take personal responsibility insuring themselves against risks.

In the domains of financial services regulation and media and communications regulation, new regulatory bodies have recently been formed: the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Office of Communications (Ofcom). Each faces complex challenges in regulating risks; each is evolving a “culture of regulation” that transcends classic forms of regulation, seeking to represent the interests of the public, undertake consumer education, engage with stakeholders and influence policy formation.

For each of these two domains, this project asks how consumers are now represented within the new culture of regulation and, on the other hand, how consumers themselves understand their changing role within communications and financial service regulation, this in turn potentially influencing their response to communications and finance-related risks.

The project was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), as part of the Social Contexts and Responses to Risk (SCARR) Network. The SCARR Network explores various forms of risks within real-life settings, allowing researchers to engage with the public and stakeholders, thereby encouraging the production of novel findings that would be of relevance to policy-makers.

The Regulators, the Public and the Media

A final dissemination event was held at the London School of Economics on Tuesday 16 September 2008. The event presented the findings of the four year ESRC-funded 'The Public Understanding of Regimes of Risk and Regulation' project. The powerpoint slides are available here, and the report here.

Final Report

This project is now concluded. The final report can be found here.

Risk is intrinsic to most facets of everyday life. Whilst economic changes and technological innovations have provided many positive benefits to modern existence, the effects are nonetheless double-edged. Individuals are faced with ambient risks and must take steps in order to ensure self-protection and self-insurance (e.g. becoming more “techno-savvy” and “media literate”). However, members of the public are not alone in protecting themselves and their families from potential risks: for example, recognising that young people may be exposed to inappropriate material, Ofcom is working with key stakeholders to promote media literacy skills across society. Similarly, the FSA is promoting public understanding of the financial system. Consumer education is thus seen as a key part of consumer protection, the aim being to help consumers make informed choices in a complex and risky environment.

Reaching out to the consumer

How do new styles of regulation conceptualise the needs of the public? How are consumers represented within the new culture of regulation? In an ever-changing social climate in which risks are invisible yet omnipresent, the FSA and Ofcom are fostering new ways of protecting consumers. Their responsibilities now go beyond traditional forms of regulation, so as to give individuals the knowledge and skills necessary to become informed consumers, and to promote public education and awareness so as to encourage individuals to make informed choices. They hold consultations and engage with user groups and stakeholders, and embrace research on issues such as social values and cultural diversity. In an unprecedented manner, the new culture of regulation is thus striving to promote and facilitate civic engagement, participation and forums for public debate, and educate and further the interests of the public. Yet little is known about how the regulators balance stakeholder interests and standpoints against the needs of the public or about the crucial interactions among regulators, key stakeholders and the public.

How does the public understand the changing context of risk and regulation?

Members of the public face a plethora of decisions and choices, together with an expanding context of information, advice, guidelines, codes of practice and opportunities to engage (ask, complain, feedback, consult, etc). How do they characterise the kinds of risks facing them? What knowledge do they have about the regulatory frameworks and its challenges? How do they understand the broader context, in terms of relations among regulation, government, commerce and the public? Are they using the new types of information available to them? Do they believe themselves to be more able to make more informed choices and decisions in their day-to-day lives as a result? While many are charting the successes and difficulties of the regulators, less attention has been paid to the public’s understanding of its changing role and responsibilities, with many unanswered questions regarding people’s understanding, concerns, perceptions of risk and strategies of risk management in their daily lives.

Lunt, P., and Livingstone, S. (2016) Is the BBC safe in Ofcom’s hands? Open Democracy blog. Reposted on the LSE Media Policy Project.

Livingstone, S., and Lunt, P. (2014) The citizen interest – still a thorny problem for Ofcom. LSE Media Policy Project.

Livingstone, S., and Lunt, P. (2013) Ofcom’s plans to promote ‘participation’, but whose and in what? LSE Media Policy Project.

Lunt, P., and Livingstone, S. (2012) Media Regulation: Governance and the interests of citizens and consumers. London: Sage.

Lunt, P., Livingstone, S., and Brevini, B. (2012) Changing regimes of regulation: implications for public service broadcasting. In G. Lowe and J. Steemers (Eds.), RIPE@2011: Regaining the initiative for public service media (pp.113-128). Goteborg: Nordicom.

Lunt, P., & Livingstone, S. (2012) The Communications Green Paper: A reform plan for Ofcom? LSE Media Policy Project.

Livingstone, S., and Lunt, P. (2011) The implied audience of communications policy making: Regulating media in the interests of citizens and consumers. In V. Nightingale (Ed.), Handbook of Media Audiences (169-189). Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Lunt, P., and Livingstone, S. (2009) The regulator, the public and the media: Imagining a role for the public in communication regulation. InterMedia, 37(1): 26-29.

Lunt, P., Livingstone, S., and Malik, S. (2008) Public understanding of regimes of risk regulation: A report on focus group discussions with citizens and consumers. Social Contexts and Responses to Risk Network (SCARR) Working Paper series (WP26).

Lunt, P., and Livingstone, S. (2008) Final project report: public understanding of regimes of risk regulation. London: Brunel/LSE.

Livingstone, S., Lunt, P., and Miller, L. (2007) Citizens, consumers and the citizen-consumer: Articulating the interests at stake in media and communications regulation. Discourse and Communication, 1(1): 85-111.

Livingstone, S., Lunt, P., and Miller, L. (2007) Citizens and consumers: Discursive debates during and after the Communications Act 2003. Media, Culture & Society, 29(4): 613-638.

Lunt, P., and Livingstone, S. (2007) Regulating markets in the interest of consumers? On the changing regime of governance in the financial service and communications sectors. In M. Bevir and F. Trentmann (Eds.), Governance, citizens, and consumers: Agency and resistance in contemporary politics (139-161). Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

Lunt, P., Livingstone, S., Kelay, T., & Miller, L. (2006). Approaches to Risk and Consumer Policy in Financial Service Regulation in the UK. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 7(1), Art. 32.

Lunt, P., Livingstone, S., Kelay, T. (2005). Risk and regulation in financial services and communications. Social Contexts and Responses to Risk Network (SCARR) Working Paper series (2005/6).

Our principal questions for exploration are a) What types of risks do the public face? b) What is the role of regulation? c) How are the public (consumers, citizens, viewers) represented and accounted for by regulators in planning processes? d) How are key stakeholders responding to the activities and policies put forward by the regulators? e) How does the new culture of regulation foster opportunities for public engagement and participation?

Project design and methods

The relations between how regulatory regimes represent the public and how the public understands regulation are complex. The project design involves two parallel case studies for each regulator. Each case study includes three empirical phases in order to permit comparison across regulatory domains: detailed analysis of policy documents and media reports; interviews with key stakeholders; and focus groups with the public. These are designed to explore the interrelationships among the regulators, the media and the public, with the media included because it is they who communicate information about regulation within the public sphere and represent public concern and discussion.

Phase I: Analysis of documents

This phase involves detailed analyses of policy and consultation documents and media coverage, in order to map out how the financial service and communications regulators represent the public within strategic documents and how they include them in their planning processes. Media reports will be analysed also to capture the critical public discussion of the new regulators, government and industry players, to understand how regulatory policy is mediated in the public sphere.

Phase II: Interviews with regulators and stakeholders

Interviews will be held with some 30 key actors from a variety of vantage points across the financial service and communications sectors (e.g. consumer and industry representatives, media and telecommunications professionals and legal representatives), as well other stakeholders and experts participating in the evolving regulatory frameworks. How do these key actors understand the very role of regulation itself? How do they conceptualise the public (consumers, citizens, viewers)? Do they share common assumptions about for example, the types of education and awareness campaigns that would suit the needs of the public?

Phase III: Focus groups with the public

A series of focus group discussions will be held with members of the public. The format of the discussions will explore: What current knowledge or direct experiences does the public have in relation to the new forms of regulation? How do they make sense of the mediated information they receive? How prominent do they envisage the potential risks to be as part of their day-to-day lives? What types of meanings do they attach to these types of risks? How would they anticipate and plan for them? To what extent have regulatory activities enabled the public to participate in making informed choices and decisions?

The project was led by Professor Peter Lunt in collaboration with Professor Sonia Livingstone.

Peter Lunt, Professor of Media and Communications at Leicester University, has worked on the mediation of public participation and has a long-standing interest in questions of identity in relation to material culture and media consumption, the psychology of the television audience, the role of the media in public participation and debate (Talk on Television, with Sonia Livingstone; Routledge, 1994) and consumer psychology. His research has been supported by a number of grants from the Economic and Social Research Council and the European Commission.

Sonia Livingstone is Professor of Social Psychology and a member of the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science. She has an established background in researching how audiences interpret and use the media; her most recent work concerns children, young people and the internet, as part of a broader interest in the domestic, familial and educational contexts of new media access and use (http://www.children-go-online.net/). Sonia is also Non-Industry Vice Chair of the Internet Watch Foundation.

Sarita Malik, Researcher in the School of Social Sciences at Brunel University, has a background in media/communications and sociology. Her research focuses on racial and cultural identities – both in relation to media representation and social change. Current interests include cultural policy and public service broadcasting, ‘race’ and reality television, and diversity in digital contexts.

Social Contexts and Responses to Risk network (SCARR)

Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)

Duration of Project 2004-2008